The Lake County Health Department said Friday it has confirmed a case of measles in an unvaccinated child.
Department officials said, “The child is being monitored by healthcare providers, and public health officials are actively working to identify and notify individuals who may have been exposed.”
The patient is stable and recovering, no other information will be released to protect the patient’s privacy. The confirmation comes as part of an ongoing investigation conducted in partnership with the Indiana Department of Health.
Michelle Arnold, deputy administrator at the Lake County Health Department, said the vaccination rate in Lake County for measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) was 79.2% in 2024.
The completion rate for childhood vaccines in Lake County was 45.1%, which is the lowest among the Northwest Indiana counties of Porter, 60.9%; LaPorte, 52.9%; Newton, 50.8%; and Jasper, 49.5%, according to the Indiana Department of Health.
Those figures compare to a statewide completion rate of 62.2% and MMR of 84.6%.
"Measles is a highly contagious virus that spreads through coughing, sneezing and close contact," Lake County health officials said. "It can linger in the air and on surfaces for up to two hours after an infected person has left the area."
Symptoms of measles typically appear seven to 14 days after exposure and include high fever, cough, runny nose, red eyes and a rash that usually begins on the face and spreads to the rest of the body.
"This case highlights the importance of community-wide protection through vaccination,” according to health officials.
