Health officials have confirmed that 10 students in a Maine high school have whooping cough.
The Portland Press Herald reports that there were initially three reported cases of pertussis at Freeport High School, then five, and now 10.
Co-Chair of Maine Families for Vaccines, Dr. Laura Blaisdell says that the cases at Freeport are not uncommon.
The publication reports that the state now has a rate eight times higher than the national average and that the state’s low vaccination rate is increasing weaknesses to the vaccine.
It also has one of the highest vaccination opt-out rates in the country.
