The number of confirmed new measles cases took a big jump over the weekend, according to the province.
There are now a total of 265 confirmed cases of measles in Alberta — that’s an increase of 55 cases since Friday.
The majority of cases are in the south health zone, which includes the City of Lethbridge and the town of Taber, where Alberta Health has issued several public warnings in recent weeks about potential measles exposures.
Dr. Sunil Sookram, Alberta’s acting chief medical officer of health, said while there have been no deaths since Alberta started seeing cases identified in March, three people are in intensive care.
As the number of measles cases in Alberta continues to jump, the province says it’s launching a new vaccination campaign that will include advertising in a variety of formats and languages.
Health Minister Adriana LaGrange says close to 90 per cent of the cases so far have involved those who weren’t vaccinated.
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She says she is encouraged that vaccination rates have been trending up, but believes the province has more work to do to spread the message.
More information on measles in Alberta, including symptoms, information on vaccinations and the latest number of confirmed cases is available online at www.alberta.ca/measles.
With files from Global News.
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