Number of Whooping Cough Cases Highest in 60 Years

Pertussis, or whooping cough, has infected at least 5,272 Californians this year, the most since 1950, according to data released by the state Department of Public Health on Wednesday. Nine infants, who were too young to receive the necessary inoculations, have died from the infection. Officials are urging family members and caregivers to receive booster shots to avoid spreading the illness.

• "Whooping Cough Vaccine To Be Required of California Seventh-Through-12th-Graders" (Lin, Los Angeles Times, 10/7).
• "Calif. Sees Most Whooping Cough Cases Since 1955" (Tayefe Mohajer, AP/San Francisco Chronicle, 10/6).