More US states report measles cases as the Texas outbreak spreads, surpassing last year’s total amid misinformation and hesitation about vaccines.
The Texas outbreak could take a year to go under control, health officials said. Meanwhile, it could spread to more states. However, the parents of a six-year-old girl who died of measles in Texas are opposed to measles vaccinations as misinformation continues to rise, including those such as US health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
“I didn’t expect to see this measles revival in 2025,” said Katherine Wells, director of Lubbock Public Health. “And I didn’t know it was in my backyard either.”
On Thursday, several other states reported measles updates. Ohio reported its first case of 2025, and Maryland announced two new lawsuits. Both states link cases to international travel. Alabama too announcement What Kansas has to do with a measles-free vaccinated child travelling the state Confirmed This month, 8 cases of measles in children.
The same goes for the measles case Confirmed California, Alaska, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington.
“Measles is one of the most infectious diseases in the world,” Lucia Donatelli, chief of the Maryland Vaccination Center, told reporters Thursday evening.
“It’s very susceptible to infection as people can stay in the air for up to two hours after leaving the room. And the best way to prevent measles is through vaccination.”
rise In an international case, the US government comes shortly after being fired and left thousands of USAID employees and contractors. Many of them worked in countries with a high proportion of measles.
However, highly contagious viruses are also on the rise in the US.
Last year there were 285 cases of measles reported in the United States. So far, there have been 378 Cases confirmed in the first few months of 2025.
Some 309 of these cases I’m in Texas. Texas has had 40 hospitalizations and one of the 6-year-old girls who have not been vaccinated from measles.
The outbreak spread to New Mexico, with 42 cases, two hospitalizations and one death in an unvaccinated adult Confirmed. It also spreads to Oklahoma announcement There are four possible cases.
Authorities suspect that the true number of cases is high. Usually, there are 1-2 deaths per 1,000 cases. Underreporting “is not the point where we know where all cases are,” Wells says.
Families with multiple cases cannot test all of them. And “I have a lot of hesitation in interacting with the medical community,” Wells says.
The majority of cases are among those who have not been vaccinated.
“There are a lot of vaccine hesitancy in Gaines County, and this is where most of the incidents are there,” Wells says. There is social pressure on the incorporation of vaccinations and misinformation over the past 20 years, she says.
The parents of the dead child video On Monday, along with child health defense, the anti-vaccine organization previously led by Kennedy.
“We definitely don’t take MMR,” the girl’s mother said, referring to the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine. “Measles wasn’t that bad. They got through it,” she said of her other four children.
“It’s not as bad as the media makes it,” his father said through the translator. The parents fought back tears through the interview.
Kennedy avoided directly recommending vaccinations during this outbreak and also promoted alternative treatments. He has it too Proposed The Texas child was unhealthy or malnourished despite medical reports that she was healthy and had no underlying conditions.
Health departments in cities like Lubbock, where hospitalized children with measles are being treated, have created mass vaccination clinics where anyone can get the MMR vaccine for free.
“We’re trying to remove all the barriers to getting vaccinated,” Wells says. “And we’re working more on the message from trustworthy leaders about the importance of vaccination.”
But so far, Lubbock Clinic has only given around 300 vaccines than usual over the past few weeks.
Without widespread vaccinations, the outbreak could last another year, she says. Other recent outbreaks have occurred in densely populated areas, but these cases have spread to New Mexico and Oklahoma, as well as 11 Texas counties.
“We have a huge, vast population that keeps watching measles pop up,” Wells says. “It takes a lot of time to change the perception of vaccines and then vaccinate people and then reach the point where there are no vulnerable people left to find measles.”
From the first two cases, Wells knew, “This is going to get bigger.” Two children admitted to hospital in Lubbock tested positive, meaning there was more community spread happening under the radar.
Now she’s worried about anyone who will stop at one of the main rest areas along the Texas highways and spread measles far beyond the state.
“It’s how easy it is to infectious measles,” Wells says. And outbreaks can fire anywhere where vaccination rates are low.
In Ohio, unvaccinated residents tested positive for measles after an international trip. According to to the state Department of Health.
Maryland officials also published two more cases of measles in unvaccinated international travelers. They flew to Dulles International Airport on March 5th. This is the same day as previous events in Maryland, but at different times.
These cases are not related to previous incidents or measles outbreaks in New Mexico and Oklahoma at health officials in New Mexico and Maryland, Texas say.
These patients, who traveled internationally together, visited several locations throughout the Washington, DC area. This included four visits to the healthcare centre, trips to the metro, shuttle buses at the national airport and car dealers over 12 days.
If a patient suspects that he is exposed to measles, care should be promptly requested, but it is extremely important to notify the health care provider of potential measles cases to ensure that others in the facility do not get sick.
“Call first and tell your provider where you are going and tell them where you are going and you are coming in because you may be exposed to measles,” says Donatelli.
“That way the provider can go ahead and make the right arrangements, ensure they are viewed safely and quickly, while also protecting others.”
