Lately, when clients have a guest visit their facility while infectious with measles, the response from state or local health departments has looked very different than it did a few years ago. In the past, a single exposure could trigger major disruptions—mandatory 21-day exclusions for unvaccinated employees, active contact tracing, and even temporary closures until proof of vaccination was submitted for all staff. Now, in many areas, including Texas, health departments don’t have the bandwidth—or aren’t as willing—to take that kind of hands-on approach. Most of our clients aren’t being asked to provide vaccination documentation or remove staff from work, just to keep sick employees out and report if anyone shows symptoms.
That’s a relief in many ways: fewer staffing headaches, less guest anxiety, and no business interruption. Even when facilities are named publicly as exposure sites, we aren’t seeing major drops in sales or lasting concerns from customers. But when health departments step back, the responsibility shifts to you. Do you know your team’s vaccination status? Are you offering vouchers for employees who still need a dose (or two) of their MMR vaccine? The businesses handling this best are the ones who are quietly preparing on an ongoing basis. They’ve updated policies, have systems to track vaccination status quickly, and talked through their plan for when — and probably not if — this happens.
Need help updating your vaccination tracking policies or systems? ZHH can help, and clients can check the app for the latest Measles Action Plan, now with separate checklists for a guest exposure versus an employee’s positive test.
As measles cases are rising across the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, we’re getting this question more and more. The good news: you’re probably well protected. If you had the measles as a kid (if you were born before 1957) or if you got two doses of the MMR vaccine (everyone vaccinated after 1989), there’s almost certainly no need for any kind of booster dose.
You may have less protection if:
Speak with your doctor or healthcare provider about whether a booster dose makes sense for you. If you’re not sure of your vaccination status, there’s no harm in getting an extra shot, but you should talk it over with your doctor, regardless.
In November, an E. coli O157:H7 outbreak linked to romaine lettuce sickened dozens of people in 15 states, killing one person and landing others in the hospital. But the FDA didn’t publicize the name of a grower or processor linked to the outbreak because by the time they found it, there was no more of the contaminated lettuce on grocery shelves. Patient lawsuits are accusing Taylor Farms, the same company linked to the Quarter Pounder onion recall last year, but they firmly deny that any of their products were the source of the lettuce outbreak. This NBC News story goes into detail: