To stop spread of spread of measles, Washington law says if student is diagnosed with measles at a school, unvaccinated students will be sent home

Parents of unvaccinated children in Spokane County could be in for more homeschooling this year.

Worries about a measles outbreak spread in the area just as students showed up for the first day of school on Tuesday, and if a student or staff member contracts the highly contagious virus, every unvaccinated person in their school will be sent home for 21 days, including those with any kind of exemption.

Such a disruption to the start of school would be the outcome based on a state law designed to stop the spread of the potentially fatal disease.

Recently appointed Washington Secretary of Health Dennis Worsham called measles “one of the most contagious diseases” and said his state department has been following the developing measles outbreak in Spokane closely. Ensuring high vaccination rates is among his priorities.

“The vaccine is our strongest prevention tool … to protect them from disease. It’s 97% effective if you’ve had both shots, and we know that is a really effective way of stopping the disease coming into our community and being spread,” Worsham told The Spokesman-Review during a Tuesday visit to Spokane.

Mark Springer, an epidemiologist with the Spokane Regional Health District, said schools must take measles seriously because it spreads easily and can lead to serious complications, especially for children.

“This is a disease that has significant mortality risk for kids as well as adults. One in a 1,000 people die from measles. That’s not something we see in the developed world,” Springer said.

The Texas outbreak earlier this year had an even higher mortality rate. Out of more than 800 cases there, three people have died.

“Most of the time, we never see the full potential of transmission with measles, because there’s always a significant number of people exposed that are already protected,” he said.

If a person with measles comes to school, everyone in the building is considered exposed to the virus.

Recent exposures in Spokane County and North Idaho have put local health officials on high alert for additional spread. While known exposures may have been contained, the unknown origin of the initial Idaho cases leave open the possibility measles has spread undetected elsewhere in Spokane.

If a Spokane student develops measles, it could be disruptive to the entire school even if the virus does not spread – waylaying all unvaccinated classmates for three weeks.

Staff at multiple school-based health centers can administer MMR vaccines to students. There are health centers embedded in Rogers, North Central and Shadle Park high schools at Spokane Public Schools, and at Shiloh Hills Elementary in the Mead School District.

Measles often presents with a high fever, runny nose and a cough. But it is distinguished by a rash that appears three to five days after initial symptoms – starting on the face and then moving down the body. The disease is considered extremely infectious partly because someone can spread it for more than a week before they exhibit any symptoms, which typically appear seven to 14 days after exposure.

To adequately stop the spread of measles, 95% of the population must be vaccinated against it. According to Springer, only 84-86% of Spokane County children have received the full regimen of the MMR vaccine against the measles, mumps and rubella. North Idaho has an even lower vaccination rate, and the number of fully vaccinated children has been declining nationally for years.

Worsham said the state Department of Health will work to “rebuild the trust” for public health to convince more parents to vaccinate their children.

“We’re going to have to slow down a bit and have those conversations, answer the questions that people have, and at the bottom line really encourage parents and individuals to have those conversations with their providers,” he said.

Spokane County has not seen any additional cases of measles since early last week when a Spokane child was presumed positive for the disease. They have since been confirmed to have measles.

That individual was exposed when a Bonner County child received treatment at Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center for then-undiagnosed measles. Those exposed between August 12 and 15 are on the tail end of measles’ two- to three-week incubation period, where an individual can be infected but without symptoms. If there are no new cases in the next week, Springer said it’s likely no one else was infected.

“If you develop measles after exposure, it is usually in that 10 to 14-day window. At least for the known exposure in Spokane, we are in that third week,” Springer said.

More people were exposed when the person with measles received Sacred Heart treatment on August 24. People exposed then are now in the second week of incubation.

The health district continues to monitor 80 people who were potentially exposed, including 14 who were unvaccinated or were unsure of their vaccine status. Only a “handful” of school-age children are staying home from the start of school based on a measles exposure.

Springer is “cautiously optimistic” Spokane will not see additional cases based on the known exposures at Sacred Heart. But he is still concerned other exposures may have occurred from cases that were not reported.

“In the Idaho cases, there was no international travel or a connection to a known measles case, so there could be larger spread than we know about,” he said.

If an unvaccinated person is exposed to measles, the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine can still provide protection within 72 hours of exposure. Within six days, a person can be given immunoglobulin that can prevent infection.

If you’re experiencing symptoms associated with measles and may have been exposed, health officials say to call ahead to your medical provider before going in person and potentially spreading the disease.

Editor’s note: This story and headline was changed on Sept. 3, 2025 to correct errors that implied the quarantine rules for students who haven’t been vaccinated for the measles are new.