Doctors bear the burden as ‘medical freedom’ fuels worst US measles outbreak in 30 years

SPARTANBURG: About a dozen times each day, medical staff at Parkside Pediatrics in Spartanburg, South Carolina, head to the clinic’s parking lot, reaching inside cars and mini vans to check children and their parents for fever, rash and other signs of measles.

Dr. Justin Moll started this outdoor triage in December to cope with what has quickly become the largest U.S. measles outbreak in more than three decades, federal health data show.

He wants to keep the highly contagious virus out of the clinic’s waiting rooms, already packed with infants and other small children. Many of them are unvaccinated against measles because they’re still too young.

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Moll and his colleagues have treated about 50 measles patients since the outbreak started in early October, something never seen before at their South Carolina clinics.

They fear that outbreaks like these are becoming the new normal as Americans’ opposition to vaccines deepens, fueled by backlash to the COVID-19 response and misinformation on social media.

Medical experts say U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s anti-vaccine policies have further undermined public trust in life-saving immunizations by promoting unproven theories about the dangers of vaccines.

“This is not going to be the last vaccine-preventable disease to hit us,” Moll told Reuters at his clinic in Spartanburg, the epicenter of the outbreak.

For this story, Reuters interviewed more than two dozen doctors, nurses, parents, school officials, pharmacists, pastors, lawmakers and former health officials in South Carolina.

The South Carolina outbreak has surpassed 930 cases, about 20 of which required hospitalization, according to state health officials. No deaths have been reported by the state.

School immunization rates statewide have dropped by nearly 3 percentage points since prior to the pandemic in 2020, as local leaders and parents pushed back against COVID-related lockdowns and vaccine mandates and demanded more “medical freedom” to choose what, if any, other routine shots their children receive.

Only 89% of all students from kindergarten up through high school are up to date on their shots in Spartanburg County, below the 95% rate that public health experts say can prevent measles’ spread.

In some local schools, vaccination rates have dropped below 20%, according to state data.

During previous outbreaks, the federal government has led the charge to encourage widespread vaccination and coordinate efforts among states to curb the spread of disease.

Kennedy has not made any major statements regarding the measles outbreak in South Carolina. HHS didn’t respond to a request for comment.

The measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) two-shot protocol remains recommended at the federal level starting at 12 months of age, with a second at 4 to 6 years of age.

Measles is among the most highly contagious viruses known. Spread through coughing, sneezing and talking, it can linger in the air for up to two hours and move quickly through communities with low vaccination coverage.

‘SOME FOLKS HAVE OVERREACTED’ IN AVOIDING ALL VACCINES

Some South Carolina Republicans now have second thoughts about discrediting routine immunization but find they hold little sway.

“I now believe that some folks have overreacted in the other direction and oppose any and all vaccines, even ones that have been tried-and-true for decades,” Josh Kimbrell, a Republican state senator running for governor, wrote last month to a Spartanburg County school board.

He asked school officials to examine their policies on vaccine exemptions for students, but was pilloried on social media when he posted the letter online. Kimbrell didn’t respond to requests for comment.

Dr. Leigh Bragg, a pediatrician near Spartanburg, said local hospitals, churches and schools are reluctant to speak up about the most proven way to curb the outbreak. “People are trying to stay in the middle and not pick a side on vaccinations,” she said.

Even South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster, a Republican, has championed personal choice as the preventable disease spreads through the state.

“Our approach is to be sure people have the information and that the vaccine is available for them, give them all the information so they can make up their mind on what they want to do,” he told reporters at a state tourism conference this week.

The outbreak struck as South Carolina’s public health department grappled with reductions in federal funding and overall staffing in recent years, two former department employees told Reuters.

Last month, the Trump administration said it had sent South Carolina $1.4 million to support its measles response. State officials said the federal government also has provided assistance with testing, clinical advice and free vaccines.

“The number of cases we’re seeing now is unprecedented,” Dr. Linda Bell, South Carolina’s state epidemiologist, said this week. “We have a great deal more work to do to stop this outbreak.”

Despite Bell’s pleas for people to get fully vaccinated, some remain reluctant to heed those calls. At state-run vaccine clinics at Spartanburg churches, only a handful of people have shown up in recent weeks.

Talina Podrez, a 21-year-old barista in Spartanburg, said measles had swept through her local church in January, leaving services about half empty. While she stayed away because she only has one of the two recommended MMR shots, Podrez said she isn’t interested in getting another shot.

“My mom was against most of the vaccines so we just got whatever was needed for the bare minimum,” she said.

‘MANY PARENTS HAVE LOST RESPECT AND FEAR FOR THIS DISEASE’

Nathan Heffington, a nurse practitioner and medical director for Parkside Pediatrics in Spartanburg County, believes that many more infections aren’t being counted. He has seen multiple unvaccinated families show up with telltale signs of measles, but then refuse to get tested.

The clinic still reports them to the state as suspected cases and advises them to quarantine.

“The actual numbers are much, much higher than the reported numbers, which is just all the more nerve-wracking,” Heffington said. “Many parents have lost respect and fear for this disease.”

While political leaders shy away from a strong endorsement of vaccines, it is left to medical providers like Moll and Heffington to persuade reluctant parents of their value.

“They’re not anti-anything. They’re just trying to do the best thing for their family and figure out who to trust,” said Moll.

Kathleen Black’s two oldest children, ages 8 and 4, got all their routine immunizations. But she wanted to hold off when her youngest, Katie, was born about a year ago.

From social media and friends, Black heard childhood vaccines may cause autism or developmental delays, claims not supported by medical research. Like many in South Carolina, she voted for Trump and supports Kennedy’s demands for more vaccine safety studies.

“I like to go down those rabbit holes and it opens up millions of questions, like ‘What’s in the vaccines? Why are we giving all these vaccines?’” she told Reuters during a visit to the Parkside clinic.

Heffington explained to her the risks posed by vaccine-preventable diseases. He then discussed the immediate threat her baby faced from measles, and the protection provided by an early MMR shot.

He answered all of her questions about possible side effects. Finally, Black pressed him: “Would you do it?”
“Absolutely,” the father of five replied.

Black agreed to the first dose that day, and her daughter received a second dose last month.
“I wouldn’t trust every doctor,” Black said, “but I definitely trust Nathan.”