As vaccination rates decline, widespread outbreaks of diseases like measles and polio could reemerge
CBSN
Health officials in western Texas are trying to contain a measles outbreak among mostly school-aged children, with at least 15 confirmed cases. It's the latest outbreak of a disease that had been virtually eliminated in the U.S., and it comes as vaccination rates are declining — jeopardizing the country's herd immunity from widespread outbreaks.
Tiffany Vargas, a mom who lives in the Tampa area, says her 8-year-old daughter has not received childhood vaccines. That includes vaccines for measles, chickenpox and polio.
"I started doing research, and I saw that a lot of doctors were just having a really hard time answering the questions that I had," Vargas told CBS News.

At ski resorts across the West this winter, viral images showed chairlifts idling over brown terrain in places normally renowned for their frosty appeal. Iconic mountain towns like Aspen, Colorado, and Park City, Utah, were seen with shockingly bare slopes, as the region endured a historic snow drought that experts warn could bring water shortages and wildfires in the months ahead. In:












