RIO DE JANEIRO, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Brazil's Ministry of Health said Wednesday that the number of confirmed measles cases in the country was 1,673 as of Monday.
In addition, there are also 7,812 suspected cases, the ministry said in a report.
Brazil is facing measles outbreaks in mainly two northern states. In Amazonas, there were 1,326 confirmed cases and 7,738 suspected cases. In Roraima, there were 301 confirmed cases and 74 pending confirmation.
There have also been some confirmed cases in six other states.
The Health Ministry said that the outbreaks were imported and related to the inflow of Venezuelan immigrants in the northern region. The virus circulating in Brazil is the same variant as that seen in Venezuela, which has been facing a measles outbreak for a year.
So far, eight people have died of measles in Brazil, with four in Roraima, the main entry point for Venezuelan immigration to Brazil. Over the past two years, many Venezuelan immigrants have crossed into Roraima.
Brazil had been awarded a certificate for eliminating the measles virus in 2016 by the Pan-American Health Organization. The country has recently launched a national measles vaccination campaign. Authorities said the vaccination rate among children is now 94.7 percent.
