This statement of support and recommendations from the National Vaccine Advisory Committee (NVAC) to the Assistant Secretary for Health highlights current efforts toward greater capabilities for cross-jurisdictional exchange of IIS data.
To cope with such outbreaks, states need robust immunization information systems (IISs), and these systems should have the capability to exchange data with different jurisdictions to provide accurate immunization histories for individuals. 2 Challenges may occur during outbreak response efforts if individuals have incomplete or inaccurate immunization records because they received immunizations from a number of different providers, live in border communities, or move often across state lines. 1 As the number of cases continued to rise and the geography of the outbreak widened, public health departments and health-care providers had to rapidly ascertain the immunization status of all potentially exposed and infected individuals.
In January 2015, a massive measles outbreak occurred after an infected individual visited an amusement park in California, resulting in more than 100 cases in individuals from 14 states and Mexico (as of February 6, 2015).
