U.S. whooping cough outbreak could be worst in half century

SEATTLE (Reuters) - The number of U.S. whooping cough cases has risen to around 18,000 in an outbreak that is on track to become the most severe in over a half century and could in part stem from possible waning vaccine protection, health officials said on Thursday. Washington state, which declared an epidemic in April, and Wisconsin were particularly hard hit, with each reporting more than 3,000 cases, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Nine people have died overall and the number of cases was already more than double than at the same time last year. ... Courtesy of Yahoo News