MEASLES – USA (17): (TEXAS) FIRST DEATH
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International Society for Infectious Diseases
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Date: Wed 26 Feb 2025
Source: Associated Press [edited]
https://apnews.com/article/measles-outbreak-west-texas-death-rfk-41adc66641e4a56ce2b2677480031ab9
A child who was not vaccinated has died from measles in West Texas,
the first death in an outbreak that began late last month [January
2025] and the first from measles in the US since 2015. The death was a
“school-aged child who was not vaccinated” and had been hospitalized
last week, the Texas Department of State Health Services said
Wednesday [26 Feb 2025] in a statement. Lubbock health officials also
confirmed the death, but neither agency provided more details.
Covenant Children’s Hospital in Lubbock didn’t immediately respond to
a request for comment. CDC confirmed this is the first measles death
in the country since 2015.
The measles outbreak in rural West Texas has grown to 124 cases across
9 counties, which state health officials have said is Texas’ largest
in nearly 30 years. There are also 9 cases in eastern New Mexico.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said that the US Department of Health and Human
Services is “watching” the outbreak, which he described as “not
unusual” during a Wednesday [26 Feb 2025] meeting of President Donald
Trump’s cabinet members. The health secretary did not provide
specifics on how or if the federal agency is assisting on the ground.
“The loss of a child is a tragedy,” and Gov. Greg Abbott and his wife
are praying for “the family, loved ones, and the entire Lubbock
community,” Abbott spokesman Andrew Mahaleris said. He added that the
governor’s office is in “regular communication” with the state health
department, that epidemiologists and vaccination teams are in the
“affected area,” and that there are “daily situation updates and
coordination calls” with local health officials. “The state will
deploy all necessary resources to ensure the safety and health of
Texans,” Mahaleris said.
Vaccination rates across the USA have declined nationwide since the
COVID-19 pandemic, and most states are below the 95% vaccination
threshold for kindergartners — the level needed to protect
communities against measles outbreaks. Measles cases were the worst in
almost 3 decades in 2019, and there was a rise in cases in 2024,
including an outbreak in Chicago that sickened more than 60.
The outbreak is largely spreading in the Mennonite community in West
Texas, where small towns are separated by vast stretches of
oil-rig-dotted open land but connected due to people traveling between
towns for work, church, grocery shopping, and other errands. Texas
health department data shows the vast majority of cases in the area
are among people younger than 18. The measles, mumps, and rubella
vaccine — which is safe and highly effective at preventing infection
and severe cases — is recommended for children between 12 and 15
months old for the first shot, with the second coming between 4 and 6
years old. The vaccine series is required for kids before entering
kindergarten in public schools nationwide.
The cases in West Texas have been concentrated in a “close-knit,
undervaccinated” Mennonite community, state health department
spokesperson Lara Anton has said, especially among families who attend
small private religious schools or are homeschooled. Gaines County,
which has 80 cases, has one of the highest rates in Texas of
school-aged children who opt out of at least one required vaccine,
with nearly 14% of K-12 children in the 2023-24 school year.
Earlier this month [February 2025], Kennedy said a panel would
investigate the childhood vaccine schedule that prevents measles and
other dangerous diseases.
Measles is a respiratory virus that can survive in the air for up to 2
hours. Up to 9 out of 10 people who are susceptible will get the virus
if exposed, according to the CDC. Most kids will recover from the
measles if they get it, but infection can lead to dangerous
complications like pneumonia, blindness, brain swelling, and death.
The CDC is providing “technical assistance, laboratory support, and
vaccines as needed” to West Texas, the agency told the AP, but the
state health department is taking the lead in the outbreak
investigation.
A news conference is scheduled in Lubbock on Wednesday [26 Feb 2025] afternoon.
[Byline: Devi Shastri, Jim Vertuno, JoNel Aleccia, Amanda Seitz]