An outbreak of measles cases in Texas has hit double digits prompting the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) to issue an alert on Friday.
Newsweek has contacted the Texas Department of State Health Services via email for comment on Saturday afternoon.
Why It Matters
Measles, an airborne disease, is an extremely infectious illness that can be especially dangerous for infants, pregnant women, and people with weakened immune systems, with the potential to cause serious and even deathly complications. It can spread rapidly in communities with low vaccination rates, and initially results in symptoms including a high fever, a cough, a runny nose, and red or watery eyes, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Initial signs of the illness include flu-like traits, but can escalate into a distinctive red, blotchy rash that is highly infectious to those that haven’t been vaccinated. According to the CDC, nearly 1 to 3 of every 1,000 children who become infected with measles will die from respiratory and neurologic complications.
According to The Texas Tribute, for some communities in Texas, these are the first cases of measles in more than 20 years.
What To Know
On Friday, the Texas DSHS issued a health alert warning of an outbreak of measles in Gaines County stating that at least 10 cases have been identified with symptoms within the last two weeks.
According to DSHS, eight of the cases are among school-aged children and two cases are under the age of 5, adding that seven of the patients have been hospitalized.
Local health officials said all of the cases are unvaccinated and residents of Gaines County as DSHS is working with South Plains Public Health District and Lubbock Public Health to investigate the outbreak.
The rise in cases came after DSHS previously issued a health alert in January after there were two confirmed cases of measles in the state, the first since 2023.
The first two cases were reported as adults who reside in the same household in Harris County and were unvaccinated against measles.
There were then two more cases confirmed by DSHS last week, who were both described as being unvaccinated, school-age children in Gaines County. The two children were hospitalized in Lubbock and have since been discharged.
The measles outbreaks come as Texas has seen a drop in vaccinations, such as the measles vaccine, since the COVID-19 pandemic, The Texas Tribune reported, as have many other states.
Measles was eradicated from the U.S. in 2000 but has since returned. Last year, there were four times more outbreaks of measles nationwide than in 2023, according to data from the CDC.
In Texas, there was a notable drop in school vaccination rates, with coverage falling from 97 percent in the 2019-20 academic year to 94.3 percent in 2023-24, according to state health data. At the same time, the number of vaccine exemption requests has skyrocketed, doubling from 45,900 in 2018 to a staggering 93,000 in 2024.
The shift comes as state lawmakers push to roll back vaccine mandates. More than 20 bills have been introduced this legislative session seeking to weaken immunization requirements, including a proposal to amend the Texas Constitution to affirm residents’ right to refuse vaccinations.
Meanwhile, health officials continue to stress that vaccines remain the most effective safeguard against measles and other preventable diseases. The standard immunization regimen includes two doses to ensure full protection.
“The best way to prevent getting sick is to be immunized with two doses of a vaccine against measles, which is primarily administered as the combination measles-mumps-rubella vaccine. Two doses of the MMR vaccine are highly effective at preventing measles,” the DSHS said in its alert on Friday.
What People Are Saying
Rekha Lakshmanan, chief strategy officer for The Immunization Partnership in Houston, a nonprofit that advocates for vaccine access, told KFF Health News on Friday: “We are going to see more kids infected. We will see more families taking time off from work. More kids in the hospital. This is the tip of the iceberg.”
Austin-Travis County Health Authority Dr. Desmar Walkes said in a city government press release in January: “Vaccination is our best defense against measles and other preventable diseases. By staying up to date on vaccinations, we not only protect ourselves but also the most vulnerable members of our community.”
What Happens Next?
In its Friday alert, the DSHS wrote that, due to the highly contagious nature of this disease, “additional cases are likely to occur in Gaines County and the surrounding communities,” adding that the agency is working with local health officials to investigate the outbreak.
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