Historic West Texas measles outbreak nears 200 cases Friday. New Mexico triples to 30

A historic measles outbreak in West Texas is just short of 200 cases, Texas state health officials said Friday, while the number of cases in neighboring New Mexico tripled in a day to 30.

The majority of cases across both states are in people younger than 18 and those who are unvaccinated or have an unknown vaccination status.

Texas health officials identified 39 new infections of the highly contagious disease, bringing the total number of people in the West Texas outbreak to 198 since it began in late January. Twenty-three people have been hospitalized so far.

Last week, a school-age child died of measles in Texas, the nation's first measles death in a decade. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced this week that they sent a team to Texas to help local public health officials respond to the outbreak.

Across the state border from the epicenter of the outbreak, Lea County, New Mexico, had 10 cases Thursday after health officials confirmed an unvaccinated adult who died without seeking medical care had the virus. However, as of Friday, measles has not been confirmed as the cause.

However, according to an update on the state health department's website, the number of cases in Lea County shot up Friday to 30. The department has said it hasn't been able to prove a clear connection to the Texas outbreak; on Feb. 14, it said a link is “suspected.”

The CDC said it has also confirmed measles cases in Alaska, California, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, New Jersey, New York City, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Washington.

But the Texas and New Mexico outbreaks make up for most of the nation’s case count.

The rise in measles cases has been a major test for U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., an anti-vaccine activist who has questioned the safety of childhood vaccines. Recently, he has stopped short of recommending people get the vaccine, and has promoted unproven treatments for the virus, like cod liver oil.

Kennedy dismissed the Texas outbreak as “not unusual," though most local doctors in the West Texas region told The Associated Press that they have never seen a case of measles in their careers until this outbreak.

The measles, mumps and rubella vaccine is safe and highly effective at preventing infection and severe cases. The first shot is recommended for children ages 12 to 15 months, and the second for ages 4 to 6 years.

Childhood vaccination rates across the country have declined as an increasing number of parents seek exemptions from public school requirements for personal or religious reasons. In Gaines County, Texas, which has the majority of cases, the kindergarten measles vaccination rate is 82% - far below the 95% needed to prevent outbreaks.

Many of Gaines County's cases are in the county's “close-knit, undervaccinated” Mennonite community, a diverse group that has historically had lower vaccination rates and whose members can be distrusting of government mandates and intervention.

Measles is a respiratory virus that can survive in the air for up to two hours. Up to 9 out of 10 people who are susceptible will get the virus if exposed, according to the CDC. Owing to the success of the vaccine, the U.S. considered measles eliminated in 2000.

What is measles?

Measles is a respiratory virus that can survive in the air for up to two hours. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, up to nine out of 10 people who are susceptible will get the virus if exposed.

Most kids will recover from measles if they get it, but infection can lead to dangerous complications like pneumonia, blindness, brain swelling, and death.

Is the vaccine safe?

Yes, the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine is safe and highly effective in preventing measles infection and severe cases of the disease.

The first shot is recommended for children between 12 and 15 months old, and the second for children between 4 and 6 years old. The vaccine series is required for kids before kindergarten in public schools nationwide.

Before the vaccine was introduced in 1963, the U.S. saw some 3 million to 4 million cases per year. Now, there are usually fewer than 200 in a normal year.

There is no link between the vaccine and autism, despite a now-discredited study and health disinformation.

Why do vaccination rates matter?

In communities with high vaccination rates — above 95% — diseases like measles have a harder time spreading through communities. This is called “herd immunity.”

But childhood vaccination rates have declined nationwide since the pandemic and more parents are claiming religious or personal conscience waivers to exempt their kids from required shots.

The U.S. saw a rise in measles cases in 2024, including an outbreak in Chicago that sickened more than 60. Five years earlier, measles cases were the worst in almost three decades in 2019.

Gaines County 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. Health officials said that number is likely higher because it doesn’t include many children who are homeschooled and whose data would not be reported.

What are public health officials doing to stop the spread?

Health workers are hosting regular vaccination clinics and screening efforts in Texas, as well as working with schools to educate people about the importance of vaccination and offering shots.

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