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Washington State Tag

The last time we visited Washington state in these posts, there was a significant outbreak of measles in the county adjacent to the blue wonderland of Portland, Oregon. Now, public health officials have warned that more than 1,000 students have a potential risk for HIV and hepatitis B and C after they received dental care at 12 schools in and around Seattle due to improperly sterilized dental tools.

Seattle is in the midst of a crisis. Tent camps have become a common sight, along with homeless people, many of whom suffer from drug addiction, mental illness or both. We recently ran a post about the frustration of police officers in Seattle and how some of them are even resigning because they feel like they're not being allowed to do their jobs. A special program from KOMO News called "Seattle is Dying" examined these and other issues. The city's leadership doesn't seem to be doing anything about it and quite a few residents have had it.

A public health emergency has been declared in Clark County, Washington, which is near the border of Oregon and close to Portland. The declaration is a result of an ongoing measles outbreak.
According to the latest update from the county's Department of Health, 23 cases of measles have been confirmed and health officials are investigating two more suspected cases.