The first measles-related death in the ongoing outbreak in West Texas involved a school-aged child who was unvaccinated and had been hospitalized in Lubbock, Texas.
Lubbock city spokesperson Lauren Adams confirmed the information but did not provide further details about the child’s age, health history, or schooling during a press conference on Wednesday, February 26. This marks the first measles death in the United States since 2015, when a woman in Washington state died.
The number of confirmed measles cases in West Texas has reached 124, with an increase of 34 cases reported since late last week. Most of these cases are in children aged 5 to 17. At President Donald Trump’s first cabinet meeting on Wednesday, he deferred a question about the outbreak to Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, who mentioned two measles deaths, although Texas officials later confirmed only one death.
So far, 18 people have been hospitalized due to the outbreak, all of whom were unvaccinated. The majority of hospitalizations are for respiratory issues related to viral pneumonia linked to measles. Health officials clarified that patients are hospitalized for acute treatment, not for quarantine purposes.
While it is unclear why Kennedy mentioned two deaths, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirmed only one measles-related death in Texas. Kennedy referred to previous measles outbreaks, stating that such incidents are not unusual and happen every year. However, Dr. Lara Johnson, the Chief Medical Officer at Covenant Health Lubbock Service Area, emphasized the importance of vaccination, noting that the frequency of outbreaks is linked to vaccination rates.
The outbreak is concentrated in Gaines County, with 80 cases, but has spread to eight other counties. Many of the affected individuals were unvaccinated or had an unknown vaccination status. Measles is highly contagious and can lead to serious complications, such as pneumonia, encephalitis, and in rare cases, death. According to the CDC, up to 3 out of 1,000 children with measles may die from respiratory or neurological complications, and 1 in 20 children with measles will develop pneumonia, which is the most common cause of death from the disease.
Experts stress that vaccination with the MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) vaccine is the most effective way to prevent measles. In response to the outbreak, the Lubbock health department has opened free vaccination clinics, providing about 70 vaccinations since the outbreak began. However, vaccine coverage remains low in Gaines County, where nearly 1 in 5 incoming kindergartners are unvaccinated. Other affected counties in Texas also fall below the 95% vaccination goal necessary to prevent outbreaks.
Given the highly contagious nature of measles, health officials expect cases to continue rising in West Texas, with experts warning that outbreaks of other vaccine-preventable diseases could follow if vaccination rates remain low.
