Measles Outbreak in Texas: Immunization Surge Follows Tragic Child Death
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Dozens of children are being rushed to a health center in the United States (US) state of Texas to get the measles vaccine, after the recent death in the area of a child who was not immunized against the highly contagious virus.
“Look at you, you’re so brave,” the nurse administering the shot tells a young girl, who was sitting on her father’s lap.
The child’s death came after immunization rates declined in the country, with the latest cases in west Texas town of Lubbock concentrated in a Mennonite religious community that has historically shown vaccine hesitancy.
A father, Mark Medina, brought his children, Shado and her brother Azazel, after they heard about that death.
“It kind of sparked fear and we’re like, ‘Alright, it’s time to go get vaccinated. Let’s go,’” the 31-year-old father told AFP.
Rachel Dolan, a Lubbock health official, said the initial outbreak spread rapidly through the community south of the town, potentially fueled by a lack of vaccination.
“It’s the most contagious virus that we know of, and so just that one little spark, you know, really caused a lot of cases and rapid spread among that population,” she said.
This year more than 130 measles cases already have been reported in west Texas and neighboring New Mexico, the vast majority in unvaccinated children.
Around 20 have been hospitalized in Texas, and officials warn the outbreak is likely to grow.
Channels Television reports that the disease’s spread comes as Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has long spread falsehoods about the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine, begins his tenure as President Donald Trump’s health secretary.
Kennedy has downplayed the outbreak, saying: “It’s not unusual. You have measles outbreaks every year.”
Nationwide immunization rates have been dropping in the United States, fuelled by misinformation about vaccines.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends a 95 percent vaccination rate in order to maintain herd immunity.
However, measles vaccine coverage among kindergartners has dropped from 95.2 percent in the 2019–2020 school year to 92.7 percent in 2023–2024, leaving around 280,000 children vulnerable.
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