Health Highlights: Jan. 19, 2018

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Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay:

Second Alert About Measles Patient At O’Hare Airport

Health officials have issued another alert about a person with measles who was at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago.

The person was at the International Terminal on Jan. 9 and may have exposed other people to the highly contagious virus. People who were at the airport that day between 8:30 a.m. and noon may have been exposed, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health, CBS News reported.

“There have been two unconnected and unrelated individuals who traveled through O’Hare Airport, one on January 9th and one on January 10th,” said Nirav Shah, director of the Illinois Department of Public Health. “Both of them had measles.”

Those most at risk are people who had close contact with the two patients, including fellow passengers, and they are being contacted directly by health officials. They may not develop measles symptoms until as late as Feb. 1.

“One of the reasons that we’re taking the steps to notify the public is that the measles virus is highly contagious. The virus can linger for up to two hours in the air or on surfaces,” Shah said, CBS News reported.

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Governors Call on Trump to do More to Fight Opioid Crisis

President Donald Trump and Congress need to do more to fight the opioid crisis, the National Governors Association said Thursday.

They made more than two dozen recommendations, including providing more money and coordination to combat what Trump late last year declared a public health emergency, the Associated Press reported.

More than 90 people in the U.S. die of an opioid overdose every day.

“While progress has been made, the consequences of opioid addiction continue reverberating throughout society,” … “devastating families and overwhelming health care providers, law enforcement and social services …” the governors noted in their recommendations, the AP reported.

The opioid crisis is starting to reduce the nation’s workforce and make it more difficult for businesses to hire, the governors said.

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