Santa Monica Daycare Center Reopens Only To Vaccinated Children

SANTA MONICA (CBSLA.com) — The infant daycare center at Santa Monica High School reopened Friday after a child contracted measles – but only to children who could prove they had been vaccinated.

School officials closed the Infant Toddler Center on the campus of Santa Monica High School for four days after confirming one of the enrolled infants had measles.

Parent Fabiola Gonzalez said she got an email and a phone call instructing her to get blood work done for her 2-year-old son Adrian so he could come back to the Infant Toddler Center.

"I got that done, we're clear, he's clear, so we're excited to come back," Gonzalez said.

Adrian was just one of a dozen children who were allowed to return to the daycare center after school officials confirmed one of the babies cared for by the center had measles.

The parents of 14 infants in that room were contacted directly by the Department of Public Health, which recommended the babies be quarantined at home for 21 days. They remain in quarantine.

It's not known where the infant contracted the disease, but school officials say some of the infants in the room were over 12 months old and have been immunized.

"A lot of the parents were concerned, you know, it's been spreading so rapidly right now, and I know a lot of parents are checking their immunization records like I did," parent Debra Mack said.

Mack's daughter is a senior at Santa Monica High, which was not closed in spite of the measles scare. Even though the larger campus was not closed, Mack said school officials have kept the parents of high school students informed about the situation.