The first measles-related death in the United States since 2015 occurred in a youngster in West Texas. The school-age, unvaccinated child was admitted to the hospital prior to his death from the illness, according to confirmation from the Texas Department of State Health Services. Prior to a planned press conference, Lubbock health officials verified the death as well but did not release any other information. The outbreak, which started late last month, is now the largest to hit the state in almost 30 years, with 124 cases scattered across nine Texas counties. Nine cases have also been detected in eastern New Mexico. Public health experts caution that the infection may spread further if immediate action is not taken.
Measles: A Fatal but Avoidable Illness
A highly contagious respiratory virus, measles is spread by sneezing and coughing. Measles can remain in the air for up to two hours after an infected person leaves a room, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Almost 90% of people who are not vaccinated and are exposed to the virus will get it. A characteristic red rash usually follows a period of fever, cough, runny nose, and pink eye. Although the majority survive, problems including blindness, brain swelling, and pneumonia can happen. Because the virus can cause low birth weight or early birth, pregnant women are especially at risk.
A Neighborhood in the Epicenter of the Epidemic
The Mennonite community in rural West Texas, where small villages are separated by miles of open countryside but are still connected by regular travel for daily errands, church, and work, is primarily affected by the outbreak.
“The cases have been concentrated in a close-knit, undervaccinated Mennonite community,” Texas Health Department spokesperson Lara Anton stated. In the impacted area, a large number of families take their kids to private religious schools or homeschool them, where vaccination rates are low. With 80 cases reported, Gaines County has one of Texas’s highest percentages of vaccine exemptions. According to state data, about 14% of K–12 students chose not to receive at least one compulsory vaccination during the 2023–24 school year.
Why Do a Lot of Mennonites Not Have Vaccines?
Mennonites are a heterogeneous set of Anabaptist churches with different practices and beliefs. While some communities have welcomed modern healthcare, others continue to have doubts about medical and governmental initiatives. Old Colony Mennonites, many of whom reside in the afflicted area, traveled between Russia, Canada, and Mexico before settling in Texas in the 1980s and 1990s, so they missed the mid-20th-century vaccination programs, according to historian Steven Nolt, an authority on Anabaptist studies. “There is absolutely no body of religious literature on [vaccination] or religious prohibition,” Nolt stated. “However, Amish and culturally conservative Mennonite groups have a history of being partially or under-immunized.”
The Longer Term: An Increase in Measles
The outbreak in Texas is a part of a concerning national pattern. In 2024, there were 285 measles cases registered in the United States, which is roughly five times the number from the year before. Prior to this, the biggest outbreak occurred in 2019, when the number of infections hit a 30-year high. The new U.S. Health Secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., has requested that a team look into the youth vaccination schedule. Kennedy has previously voiced doubts about immunizations, which has alarmed public health professionals. With two doses, the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccination prevents 97% of infections, according to the CDC, which also claims that the vaccine is safe and very effective.
How Can the Measles Outbreak Be Handled?
The best defense, according to health professionals, is vaccination. Children should have their first MMR vaccination between the ages of 12 and 15 months, and then another dose between the ages of 4 and 6 months, according to the CDC. In Texas, unless they are exempted for religious or medical reasons, public schoolchildren are required to be vaccinated. Nevertheless, vaccine reluctance continues to be a problem. In 2023, the kindergarten vaccination rate in the United States fell, and the number of exemptions hit a record high. “It’s never too late to get vaccinated,” added Dr. Paul Offit, a pediatrician at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. “Protection typically lasts a lifetime.”
A reminder that diseases that were once believed to be eradicated can resurface if vaccination rates fall is the measles outbreak. The death of a kid in West Texas serves as a reminder of the practical repercussions of inadequate vaccination. Communities are being urged by public health authorities to vaccinate their children and take measles seriously. Outbreaks like this one could become more common—and more fatal—if vaccination rates don’t increase.