Public Health Madison & Dane County continues to investigate the confirmed case of measles in Dane County. The investigation has identified two additional community exposure locations where people have been exposed to measles:

• Madison Metro
  • Monday, January 26: J Route, H Route, G Route, O Route buses potentially impacted from 4:05 pm to 8:55 pm
  • Wednesday, January 28: C1 Route, J Route, O Route, H Route buses potentially impacted from 10:00 am to 3:10 pm
  • Find a detailed list of impacted routes at this Madison Metro webpage
• UnityPoint Health - Meriter Hospital Emergency Department
  • Saturday, January 31 from 10:20 am to 12:30 pm
  • 202 S Park St, Madison

"Measles is extremely contagious. The virus can linger in the air for up to two hours after a person with measles has left the space," said Janel Heinrich, Director of Public Health Madison & Dane County. "Given the changing nature of bus routes, we are asking anyone who rode the bus on these dates and at these times to be aware and monitor yourself for symptoms."

If you can confirm you were vaccinated, it's extremely unlikely you will get measles. If you are fully vaccinated, the measles vaccine is 97% effective at preventing illness. Keep an eye out for measles symptoms just in case, but it's very unlikely you will get sick.

These locations are in addition to the following locations previously announced:

• Qdoba Restaurant
  • 2 N. Park Street, Madison, WI
  • Sunday, January 25 from 1:00 pm to 5:00 pm
• UW-Madison Brogden Psychology Building
  • 1202 W. Johnson Street, Madison, WI
  • Monday, January 26 from 12:00 pm to 6:00 pm
  • Tuesday, January 27 from 12:00 pm to 6:00 pm
  • Wednesday, January 28 from 12:00 pm to 6:00 pm
• Waisman Center
  • 1500 Highland Avenue, Madison, WI
  • Monday, January 26 from 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm
  • Wednesday, January 28 from 10:00 am to 1:00 pm
• UW-Madison Genetics Building: Biotechnology Center Building
  • 425 Henry Mall, Madison, WI
  • Tuesday, January 27 from 10:30 am to 1:00 pm
• UW-Madison Union South
  • 1308 W. Dayton Street, Madison, WI
  • Monday, January 26, from 7:00 pm to 9:15 pm and
  • Tuesday, January 27, from 2:00 pm to 5:00 pm

For these locations, there is not a list of specific people exposed, so direct outreach is not possible. Anyone at these locations during the dates and times should monitor themselves for symptoms of measles and check their vaccination status as soon as possible. Wisconsin residents can find their immunization records using the Wisconsin Immunization Registry (WIR) or call your health care provider. If more sites are identified, we will add them to our measles webpage.

Measles symptoms appear 7 to 21 days after exposure to the virus, beginning with a fever, cough, runny nose, and watery eyes, followed by a rash that usually spread from the head to the rest of the body. If you develop any of these symptoms, stay home (do not go to work, school, shopping, or use public transportation) and call your doctor's office or clinic before visiting so they can take precautions so that other patients are not exposed to the virus.

Measles can be prevented by the MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) immunization. The MMR vaccine can protect you from serious illness. Most people got the measles vaccination since two doses are required for school entry. DHS considers people who received two doses of measles vaccine as children according to the U.S. vaccination schedule protected for life, and they do not ever need a booster dose.

Public Health offers free vaccines to uninsured adults and children, and children with Medical Assistance. Please reach out to Public Health at [email protected] or call (608) 266-4821 with questions about a possible exposure.