The measles outbreak in Arizona, which originated in California's Disney Parks, has exposed 1,000 people (including 200 children) to the virus.
Local health officials are asking people who were never vaccinated for the disease to stay in their homes for 21 days, which is a standard health practice, reported CBS News. Alternatively, they were asked to don face masks if they had to go in public.
"To stay in your house for 21 days is hard," Will Humble, State Health Services Director, told CBS News. "But we need people to follow those recommendations, because all it takes is a quick trip to the Costco before you're ill and, 'bam,' you've just exposed a few hundred people. We're at a real critical juncture with the outbreak."
There were seven confirmed cases of the measles in Arizona so far, but with the number of people exposed Humble told CBS News it's unlikely for the number to stay that low.
One Arizona woman who has the measles came into contact with the family who were first diagnosed with the disease, but she didn't have any symptoms when she first visited the Phoenix Children's East Valley Center.
"Unfortunately, she came down with the disease and by the time it was recognized had already exposed a large number of children at the facility," Bob England Maricopa County health director, told CBS News.
Some of the most common measles symptoms include fever, runny nose, cough, red eyes, and sore throat, and a rash that spreads all over the body.
In addition to Arizona, cases have been reported in Colorado, Michigan, Nebraska, Oregon, Utah and Washington state - which were all connected to the California outbreak.
