Governor Kathy Hochul has declared a statewide disaster emergency as measles cases climb across rural New York, where vaccination rates have lagged. The state has recorded 108 cases this year, the most since 2019, with most concentrated in the Finger Lakes region. The declaration allows midwives, pharmacists and other health workers to give measles vaccines, making shots easier to access. In the hardest-hit counties, fewer than 80% of children had received their first dose by age two, and in Yates County the rate is about 53%. Read more here.