Update on measles outbreak in Gaines County, TX
Over 60 confirmed cases of measles have been reported in Texas and at least 8 cases have been reported across the border in New Mexico.
Coverage of the MMR vaccine is particularly low in Gaines County, where nearly 1 in 5 incoming kindergartners in the 2023-24 school year did not get the vaccination. The outbreak is expected to continue with no end in sight.
Children have been granted religious and other non medical exemptions in Texas with poor record keeping.
Other affected Texas counties also fall below the goal that at least 95% of children in kindergarten will have gotten two doses of the MMR vaccine, a threshold set by the US Department of Health and Human Services to help prevent outbreaks of the highly contagious disease. Lynn, Lubbock and Yoakum counties all stand around 92%, according to data from the Texas Department of Health.
The US has now fallen short of that threshold for four years in a row.
Coverage of the MMR vaccine is particularly low in Gaines County, where nearly 1 in 5 incoming kindergartners in the 2023-24 school year did not get the vaccination. The outbreak is expected to continue with no end in sight.
Children have been granted religious and other non medical exemptions in Texas with poor record keeping.
Other affected Texas counties also fall below the goal that at least 95% of children in kindergarten will have gotten two doses of the MMR vaccine, a threshold set by the US Department of Health and Human Services to help prevent outbreaks of the highly contagious disease. Lynn, Lubbock and Yoakum counties all stand around 92%, according to data from the Texas Department of Health.
The US has now fallen short of that threshold for four years in a row.
