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Whooping cough outbreak fails to reach Hawaii
POSTED: 01:30 a.m. HST, Nov 12, 2010
Local health officials are keeping an eye on pertussis outbreaks in California, but so far there has been no increase in cases in Hawaii.
California has reported 6,257 cases of pertussis, or whooping cough, so far this year, the highest number since 1960. Ten infants have died.
There have been 58 reported cases of pertussis in Hawaii, said state health spokeswoman Janice Okubo. Okubo said it is not an unusual number. There were 46 cases of pertussis in 2009, she said.
"We are carefully watching the cases because we are aware of the outbreak in California," Okubo said. "We do report all of our case numbers to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which is monitoring the situation."
The city Emergency Services Department has been offering vaccinations to employees. It has administered 70 doses, to about a third of its personnel.
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