Monday, February 4, 2019

University of Illinois—Champaign—Measles Alert

illinois public media news

Second Measles Case Reported In Champaign-Urbana

February 03, 2019

BY JIM MEADOWS.

Champaign-Urbana Public Health District office building.

Offices of the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District in Champaign.

CU Citizen Access

A second case of measles has been reported in Champaign-Urbana. Like the first case announced in January, this second case involves a member of the University of Illinois campus community.

“What we have right now are two college-age unvaccinated persons, who are infected with measles,” said Champaign-Urbana Public Health District Administrator Julie Pryde. “And we know that right now that it’s not into the school-age population, the K-through-12 or the younger children.”

Measles is more likely to result in potentially life-threatening complications among children under 5 and adults over 20, according to the federal Centers for Disease Control. Complications can include pneumonia and encephalitis (swelling of the brain).

Campus Vice-Chancellor for Academic Affairs and Provost Andreas Cangellaris says the university is working with its own McKinley Health Center and the Public Health District to try to identify and warn anyone susceptible to measles about the local presence of the highly infectious disease. That includes anyone who has never had measles and who has never been vaccinated for it.

The C-U Public Health District says the second measles patient was infectious when visiting the following locations around the following times (two hours have been added to the time after the patient left the following locations):

1/28/19, 9 AM-Noon & 2:30-5:30 PM:  MTD #22 Bus (weekday daytime Illini or Illini Limited bus)

1/28/19, 9:30 AM – 4:15 PM & 1/29/19, 3-6 PM: University of Illinois School of Social Work, 1010 W. Nevada St., Urbana, IL

1/31/19, 7:30-9:30 PM: Carle Hospital Emergency Department, Urbana IL

1/27-31/19: Maywood Apartment Building, 51 E. John Street, Champaign IL

Pryde says the two people diagnosed with measles had not been vaccinated or had measles before. She says it’s fortunate for the general population that the measles vaccination rate in the Champaign-Urbana area is high.

“Champaign is highly immunized, and we definitely have the herd immunity going on right now,” said Pryde. “That is one of the things that we need to be vigilant about and maintain.”

Immunization against measles is included in the MMR (Measles, Mumps, Rubella) vaccine. The vaccine is delivered in two doses, with the first dose typically given to children at the age of one. But Pryde says the level of protection from the measles virus is up to 93 percent with the first dose alone, and 97 percent with two doses.

Pryde says anyone who has not been vaccinated for measles should contact their healthcare provider or the Public Health District at 217-531-4255. She says anyone who feels they may have the measles stay home and call their healthcare provider first before going into see them, so that precautions can be taken against exposing others to the virus.

Symptoms of measles include rash, high fever, cough, runny nose and red, watery eyes. The disease is easily spread through the air via coughing or sneezing. Contact with mucus or saliva from an infected person can also spread measles. Pryde says people with measles can spread the virus for four days before showing symptoms, and be contagious for another four days once symptoms appear.

Once a common childhood disease, measles was all but eradicated in the United States with the development of the measles vaccine. But small outbreaks of measles have returned in recent years, attributed to a drop in vaccination rates. More than 40 people have been diagnosed with measles in an ongoing outbreak in parts of Oregon and Washington state.

In Illinois, the last measles outbreak of any size was 17 cases in 2015. In 2018, there were just four cases as of December 5th, no cases reported in 2017, and two cases in 2016. Pryde says that before this year, the last measles case reported in Champaign-Urbana and Champaign County was in 2006.

Above is from:  https://will.illinois.edu/news/story/second-measles-case-reported-in-champaign-urbanaMcKinley Health Center

Measles Alert

McKinley Health Center is working with the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District regarding a recent measles case. Measles is a highly contagious disease to persons who are unvaccinated and exposed. The MMR vaccine (Measles/Mumps/Rubella) provides protection against measles in most situations. The MMR is a routine immunization in many countries and is a requirement at the University of Illinois.

Measles is spread to others through the air after someone coughs or sneezes. Measles symptoms include: fever, cough, runny nose, red-watery eyes, and a rash.

Public Health considers a person protected (immune) from measles if they have had one of the following:

  • Two doses of measles containing vaccine (MMR or measles).
  • A laboratory confirmed positive measles antibody result.
  • Born before 1957.

McKinley is working with Public Health to identify at risk individuals and will be notifying these individuals as identified.

If you are unsure if you meet the above immunity standards, you may:

  • View your immunization history on the MyMcKinley Student Health Portal
  • Call McKinley Health Center at (217)333-2700 to review your vaccination history. 
  • If you think you have symptoms of measles, stay home, stay away from others and contact McKinley immediately.

Additional information on measles can be found at: https://www.cdc.gov/measles/index.html

Lawmaker wants townships with big bank accounts to return money to taxpayers


This article was also reprinted in the Boone County Journal, February 1, 2019


Lawmaker wants townships with big bank accounts to return money to taxpayers

A township in central Illinois that overtaxed residents for years is returning more than $735,000 to local property taxpayers, a rare rebate that one lawmaker said he wants to see happen in more of the state's 1,400 townships.

Shelbyville Township recently returned $735,000 back property taxpayers because its reserve funds exceeded two and a half years of annual operating expenses, said state Rep. Brad Halbrook, R-Shelbyville, who helped pass a law that mandated such rebates. Shelbyville Township's general assistance fund, used to help low-income residents, typically spent about $16,000 a year, according to media reports. The general assistance fund had a balance of more than $200,000 – enough for 12.5 years.

Halbrook said the law he passed a year and a half ago was based on a 1969 Illinois Supreme Court Case from Adams County.

“A business owner sued the county because they had funds on interest and ‘they’re overtaxing me’ and the courts ruled in that favor,” Halbrook said.

Halbrooks’ measure requires townships to limit reserves to two and a half years worth of annual operating expenses.

“That’s two and a half years worth of cash,” Halbrook said. “That’s a big number, so there’ll be all kinds of stuff going on. The whole idea was to protect taxpayers. We have to maintain taxpayers in the back of our minds all the time.”

Halbrook wants Shelbyville Township to serve as a model for others.

“Hopefully the townships across the state of Illinois would do the right thing and take a look,” Halbrook said. “I think what’s going to happen in our township is, a year ago before they voted to rebate the funds back they reduced our levy in the town portion 33 percent. This year they held it even and so I think as this thing balances out we’ll see a reduction of the overall tax burden to property owners.”

Halbrook said last month’s rebates to more than 2,000 property owners ranged from a few thousand dollars to $20 to $30, based on the equalized assessed value of the property.


  • Greg Bishop

Greg Bishop

Reporter

Greg Bishop reports on Illinois government and other statewide issues for INN. Bishop has years of award-winning broadcast experience, and previously hosted “The Council Roundup,” as well as “Bishop On Air,” a morning-drive current events talk show.

Above is from:  https://www.ilnews.org/news/state_politics/lawmaker-wants-townships-with-big-bank-accounts-to-return-money/article_20c9fd78-1b53-11e9-a1d8-1b3d85960e72.html