A recent outbreak of measles appears to be tied to the influx of Venezuelan migrants to Chicago, according to recent reports. The news comes as the city struggles under the weight of thousands of migrants as 2023 saw the largest inflow of illegal immigrants in the nation’s history.
The number of measles cases around Chicago has nearly doubled in recent months as Venezuelan migrants entered the city in significant numbers. Many of the migrants are not vaccinated against the disease.
CDC: Staggering 84% of measles cases in major Chicago outbreak linked to Venezuelan migrants https://t.co/L5IJlVtbJ8
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) May 17, 2024
The Centers for Disease Control reported an 84% increase in measles cases linked to migrants who entered the country. The health agency said that the current outbreak was traced back to one migrant boy who entered the city suffering from the disease.
Overall, the cases were linked to the same migrant shelter in Chicago.
Furthermore, the CDC cited additional cases of measles tied to migrants arriving from Peru and Chile.
There have been at least 57 cases of measles linked to the single shelter alone. The shelter has housed about 2,100 people since February.
The Chicago-area outbreak is currently the largest in the country.
The news came as 2023 saw more than three million attempted illegal entries into the United States. The figure was the first time that the flow exceeded that number and was the highest on record.
In addition, December 2023 saw the highest monthly total in American history, with more than 300,000 migrants attempting to enter the United States that month.
Much of the flow occurred after the Biden administration announced that it would end the Title 42 asylum policy created by former President Donald Trump.
Amid the large migrant surge, a number of border states including Arizona, Florida and Texas began sending migrants northward, especially to states and cities that enacted ‘sanctuary’ status for illegal aliens.
In addition to the migrants arriving in Chicago, New York City has taken in about 200,000 illegal aliens in the past two years. New York is facing similar pressure as Chicago in handling the large influx.
