MEDFORD, Ore. (AP) — Whooping cough cases have increased sharply in Jackson County, where the number reported is already more than double the total for last year.
So far, 23 cases have been confirmed in the southern Oregon county, which averaged about 11 cases per year over the past five years.
The last major outbreak of whooping cough, also called pertussis, was in 2003, when more than 100 cases were recorded in Jackson County.
Cases that have been confirmed in lab testing this year have hit patients ranging from 2 months old to 55 years old.