ROCKLAND, New York — A county in New York City’s northern suburbs is banning unvaccinated minors from public places to fight a measles outbreak that has infected more than 150 people since October.
“Effective at the stroke of midnight, Wednesday, March 27, anyone who is under 18 years of age and unvaccinated against the measles will be barred from public places until this declaration expires in 30 days or until they receive the MMR vaccination,” according to a statement to NBC News from Rockland County officials.
The public spaces include schools, stores, places of worship and public transit, reports NBC News. Police will not ask for vaccination documentation, but they will enforce the rules if violations are determined.
The county is experiencing New York state’s longest measles outbreak since the disease was officially eliminated from the United States in 2000. Health officials say the best way to stop the disease’s spread is a high vaccination rate in the community.
Earlier this month, a federal judge denied parents’ request to let 44 unvaccinated children return to the Waldorf School in Rockland County.
