First case of polio confirmed in the US in nearly a decade

The US has reported its first case of polio in nearly a decade after health officials in the state of New York said a patient had tested positive for the disease.

The state’s health department said on Thursday (21 July) that the case was detected in a resident of Rockland County, about 48km (30 miles) north of New York City.

According to Al Jazeera, the person is no longer deemed contagious, but investigators are trying to figure out how the infection occurred and whether others were exposed.

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