After four confirmed cases of measles in Michigan last month, health departments in central and northern Michigan have released statements encouraging people to get caught up on their measles vaccines.
Public health officials also worry that vaccine hesitancy could cause more measles outbreaks throughout the state.
Scott Izzo, community health director and epidemiologist in Oscoda County, said vaccine hesitancy could be rooted in people not seeing or experiencing a bought with measles.
"Back in the day, there were hundreds of thousands of people would get measles a year. It's incredibly infectious," Izzo said. "And as we started to vaccinate, and the virus started to go away, we stopped seeing the negative side effects of actually getting the disease."
Alyssa Maturen, supervising educator with Michigan State University Extension, said another reason some people might not be getting the vaccine is because of the political ties that come with getting vaccinated.
"Around 2016-2020, vaccines became very politicized and seen more, as a political topic instead of an unbiased medical recommendation or healthcare public health measure," Maturen said.
Izzo said other factors such as economics, religion and misinformation are key reasons why people are unwilling to get vaccinated.
Vaccinations for the MMR vaccine statewide has dropped from 89% in 2017 to 84% in 2022 in children aged four to six.
In Alcona, Iosco, Ogemaw and Oscoda counties, only 62% of children aged four to six have received the measles MMR vaccine, while only 71% of children from 19 to 36 months old have gotten the shot.
Medical experts claim that the MMR vaccine is 93% effective with one shot, and 97% effective with two shots.
