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BySara Kellner
Fact checked byCarol L. DiBerardino, MLA, ELS

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February 18, 2025
3 min read
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Texas measles outbreak nears 60 cases, most in unvaccinated children

BySara Kellner
Fact checked byCarol L. DiBerardino, MLA, ELS

Key takeaways:

  • Five counties in Texas have reported 58 measles cases over the last 3 weeks.
  • Most cases are in Gaines County, which has one of the highest vaccine exemption rates in Texas.

A measles outbreak in Texas has climbed to nearly 60 cases in 3 weeks, with most cases occurring among unvaccinated children, according to state health officials.

Out of 58 cases, 45 were reported in Gaines County, near the Texas-New Mexico border, which has one of the highest kindergarten vaccine exemption rates in the state. The other cases were reported in neighboring counties: one in Lubbock County, one in Lynn County, nine in Terry County and two in Yoakum County. In all, 13 people have been hospitalized, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS).

IDC0225Measles_graphic
Data derived from Texas Department of State Health Services.

Six of the cases occurred among adults, 33 are aged 5 to 17 years, and 15 are children aged 4 years or younger. The ages of four patients were not reported.

Four of the people were vaccinated. The rest of the cases occurred in people who were unvaccinated or had an unknown vaccination status, the DSHS said.

Measles is surging globally. According to a joint report from the CDC and WHO, there was a 20% increase in cases in 2023. Measles is one of the most contagious infectious diseases, with the virus that causes it capable of living in the air of a room for up to 2 hours after an infected person leaves, according to the CDC.

Kindergarten vaccine exemptions are on the rise across the United States, exceeding 3% nationally during the 2023-2024 school year, according to CDC data. Gaines County has one of the highest vaccine exemption rates in the state of Texas — 17.62% of kindergarteners received exemptions during the 2023-2024 school year, data show. One school district in Gaines County reported an exemption rate of 47.95%, according to a report from the state health department.

“Measles is the most highly transmissible virus of children, so as vaccine uptake declines, it is not unusual for measles to become the first breakthrough infection,” Peter J. Hotez, MD, PhD, dean of the National School of Tropic Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine and codirector of the Texas Children’s Hospital Center for Vaccine Development in Houston, told Healio. “The one-two punch is low immunization rates and then an inciting event, possibly importation of measles.”

These are not the first measles cases in Texas this year. The state health department reported two measles cases in Harris County, which encompasses the Houston metro area, in January. According to the DSHS, the outbreak in Gaines County is unrelated to the cases in Harris County.

The public health department in nearby Lubbock, Texas, is hosting a drive-up MMR vaccine clinic this week for anyone who has not received both recommended doses yet.

The U.S. eliminated endemic — or local transmission — of measles in 2000, but travel-related outbreaks still occur. The country would lose its measles elimination status if one of those outbreaks persists for more than a year.

References:

Sources/Disclosures

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Source:

Texas Health and Human Services. Measles Outbreak – Feb. 18, 2025. https://www.dshs.texas.gov/news-alerts/measles-outbreak-feb-14-2025. Updated Feb. 18, 2025. Accessed Feb. 18, 2025.

Disclosures: Hotez reports having written books about vaccine disinformation.

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measles
contagious infectious diseases
vaccination
immunization
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