A school-aged child has died in Lubbock from measles, the first death reported in an ongoing outbreak that has infected more than 120 people in West Texas since January, Texas Department of State Health Services confirmed on Wednesday.
According to state officials, the child, who was unvaccinated, was hospitalized in Lubbock last week. It is not clear whether the child lived in Lubbock or where the child was infected with the measles. The Associated Press first reported the death on Wednesday.
The last time a person died of measles in Texas was in 2018 when a 10-year-old living in North Texas died. That death was not connected with an outbreak and it was not known if the case was connected to international travel at the time.
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The Lubbock Health Department has hosted vaccine clinics several times this week. It is open to people who have not received the two recommended doses of the MMR vaccine, which protects against measles. Katherine Wells, director for the city health department, said there is a potential for the virus to spread more as spring break approaches.
“The more cases we see, the more potential there is for spread,” Wells said. “People who are exposed and have been told they are exposed by public health need to stay home.”
Wells said if people get vaccinated this week, it would be fully effective in two weeks. During the vaccine clinics over the weekend, Wells said they gave between 100-150 additional measles-mumps-rubella-varicella, or MMRV vaccination, than they normally would.
About an hour south of Gaines County, Ector County Judge Dustin Fawcett said he and his wife are concerned about measles because they have an 8-month-old son who is below the recommended age to receive the MMRV vaccination. Two cases of measles have been reported in Ector County, according to the state. One case was an infant under a year old who was hospitalized.
“It’s the young children I’m most concerned about,” Fawcett said. “I’m concerned about our daycares and our elementary schools.”
If Ector County identifies three measles cases from separate households, the state health department could allow the county to deliver vaccines to individuals younger than a year old.
Following the news that one Texan had died of measles, Fawcett urged his constituents to stay informed and not to panic.
“This is not code red, we don’t need people running out getting tested,” Fawcett said. “If people have concerns, call a doctor.”
And we could be seeing cases in other parts of the state if we’re unlucky. Too soon to say, and perhaps the timing will work out for us. Be that as it may, the infection count as of Tuesday was 124.
A measles outbreak in northwest Texas grew to 124 cases in nine counties on Tuesday, and health officials warned that residents in other parts of the state may have been exposed to the highly contagious respiratory illness.
The state’s largest measles outbreak in more than 30 years has already spread to neighboring New Mexico, which reported nine cases on Tuesday. The latest update from the Texas Department of State Health Services Texas now includes a handful of cases in the northernmost part of the Panhandle and potential exposures in San Antonio and San Marcos.
The outbreak is still concentrated in school-aged children, who account for 101 of the 124 cases. Only five of the cases are among individuals who have received the vaccine that protects against measles, mumps and rubella; the rest are among individuals who are unvaccinated or whose vaccination status is unknown.
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Texas has not seen such a large measles outbreak since 1992, when the state reported 1,097 cases, a review of DSHS data shows. Houston also reported a pair of measles cases last month, but officials said they do not appear to be connected to the larger outbreak.
Gaines County, located in the South Plains region along the New Mexico border, remains the epicenter of the outbreak. The small county reported 80 cases on Tuesday, accounting for roughly two-thirds of all cases in the outbreak.
Nearby Terry County reported 21 cases, just one more than it reported Friday. Dawson County reported seven, also an increase of one since Friday.
Dallam County, the furthest northwest in the Panhandle, reported its first four cases on Tuesday. Martin County also reported its first three cases.
Yoakum County reported five cases, Ector County reported two, and Lubbock and Lynn counties each reported one.
Gaines County’s population is around 22K, so about 0.36% of the total. If 0.36% of Harris County were infected, we’d be talking over 17,000 people. Keep that in mind.
Also keep in mind, Kennedy vowed to investigate the childhood vaccine schedule that prevents measles, polio and other dangerous diseases, despite promises not to change it during his confirmation hearings.
I’m filled with confidence. How about you? ABC News, the Press, the Houston Landing, Your Local Epidemiologist, and the Current have more.
UPDATE: Yikes.
The first case of measles has been reported in Rockwall County, county officials confirmed Wednesday.
The Rockwall County Commissioners Court said in a news release that the case was reported to them Tuesday by the Texas Department of State Health Services.
The patient was not identified, but the release specified they are an adult and that all of their direct contacts have been notified for observation.
Officials said they do not believe the case is connected to the recent measles outbreak in West Texas, but added they are “closely monitoring the situation to swiftly identify and address any new cases.”
Rockwall County is east of Dallas, and many hundreds of miles from Gaines County. I suppose it’s a good thing if indeed this case is not related to the Gaines County cases, but on the other hand it may suggest that this outbreak is wider and deeper than we first thought. Here’s hoping this case is like the two in Houston and doesn’t grow beyond that.