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Patient in D.C. diagnosed with measles

Posted at 6:29 AM, May 22, 2017
and last updated 2017-05-22 06:29:07-04

WASHINGTON (AP) - Health officials are warning residents in the Washington area that a patient admitted to a local hospital has been diagnosed with measles.

The Maryland health department says the patient was admitted with the highly contagious virus to Children's National Medical Center in DC. Officials say the patient contracted measles outside the U.S. and developed symptoms in the country.

The patient has been in isolation since May 13, but spent time in public spaces before the diagnosis, including at the Prince George's Hospital Center Emergency Department, the Department of Social Services Building in Hyattsville, Maryland and on a public transit bus.

Officials say most people are vaccinated against measles, but say the virus is highly contagious to those who are unvaccinated.