Cases of measles in South Carolina’s Upstate continue to rise in a record-breaking year for the highly contagious disease that was once thought to have been eradicated. The Department of Public Health is reporting that it has identified 16 cases in the Upstate since July 9. Twelve of those cases have been in Spartanburg County.
A gym and two schools have been identified as sites of infection for the airborne virus, which causes a distinctive bright red rash and high fevers.
The virus is extremely contagious and most dangerous to children with 1-3 deaths occurring per 1,000 cases. Following a decades-long vaccination campaign, the disease was considered eradicated in the United States in 2000. But growing opposition to vaccines has led to a resurgence in cases, according to public health experts…