US sees third measles-related death amid outbreaks
[April 07, 2025]
By DEVI SHASTRI
A second school-age child who was hospitalized with measles is the third
measles-related death in the U.S. since the virus started ripping
through West Texas in late January.
The child died Thursday, according to state health officials. The child
was 8 years old, according to a statement from Health Secretary Robert
F. Kennedy Jr. A spokesperson for UMC Health System in Lubbock, Texas,
confirmed the child was unvaccinated and being treated for measles
complications.
The U.S. now has more than double the number of measles cases it saw in
all of 2024, with Texas reporting another large jump in cases and
hospitalizations on Friday. Other states with active outbreaks — defined
as three or more cases — include New Mexico, Kansas, Ohio and Oklahoma.
The virus has been spreading in undervaccinated communities.
The multi-state outbreak confirms health experts' fears that the virus
will take hold in other U.S. communities with low vaccination rates and
that the spread could stretch on for a year. The World Health
Organization said last week that cases in Mexico are linked to the Texas
outbreak.
Measles is caused by a highly contagious virus that's airborne and
spreads easily when an infected person breathes, sneezes or coughs. It
is preventable through vaccines, and has been considered eliminated from
the U.S. since 2000.
Here's what else you need to know about measles in the U.S.
How many measles cases are there in Texas and New Mexico?
Texas' outbreak began more than two months ago. State health officials
said Friday there were 59 new cases of measles since Tuesday, bringing
the total to 481 across 19 counties — most of them in West Texas. The
state also logged 14 new hospitalizations, for a total of 56 throughout
the outbreak.
More than 65% of Texas' cases are in Gaines County, population 22,892,
where the virus stated spreading in a close-knit, undervaccinated
Mennonite community. The county now has logged 315 cases since late
January — just over 1% of the county's residents.
New Mexico announced six new cases Friday, bringing the state’s total to
54. New Mexico health officials say the cases are linked to Texas'
outbreak based on genetic testing. Most are in Lea County, where two
people have been hospitalized, and two are in Eddy County.
A child died of measles in Texas in late February — Kennedy said age 6 —
and New Mexico reported its first measles-related death in an adult on
March 6.
How many cases are there in Kansas?
Kansas has 24 cases in six counties in the southwest part of the state
as of Wednesday. Kiowa and Stevens counties have six cases each, while
Grant, Morton, Haskell and Gray counties have five or fewer.
The state's first reported case, identified in Stevens County on March
13, is linked to the Texas and New Mexico outbreaks based on genetic
testing, a state health department spokesperson said. But health
officials have not determined how the person was exposed.
How many cases are there in Oklahoma?
Cases in Oklahoma remained steady Friday: eight confirmed and two
probable cases. The first two probable cases were “associated” with the
West Texas and New Mexico outbreaks, the state health department said.
A state health department spokesperson said measles exposures were
confirmed in Tulsa and Rogers counties, but wouldn't say which counties
had cases.
How many cases are there in Ohio?
Ohio reported one new measles case Thursday in west-central Allen
County. Last week, there were 10 in Ashtabula County in the northeast
corner of the state. The first case was in an unvaccinated adult who had
interacted with someone who had traveled internationally.
In central Ohio, Knox County officials reported two new measles cases in
international visitors, for three cases in international visitors total.
Those cases are not included in the state's official count because they
are not in Ohio residents. A measles outbreak in central Ohio sickened
85 in 2022.
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 Where else is measles showing up
in the U.S.?
Measles cases also have been reported in Alaska, California,
Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota,
New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee,
Vermont, and Washington.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention defines an
outbreak as three or more related cases. The agency counted six
clusters that qualified as outbreaks in 2025 as of Friday.
In the U.S., cases and outbreaks are generally traced to someone who
caught the disease abroad. It can then spread, especially in
communities with low vaccination rates. In 2019, the U.S. saw 1,274
cases and almost lost its status of having eliminated measles. So
far in 2025, the CDC's count is 607.
Do you need an MMR booster?
The best way to avoid measles is to get the measles, mumps and
rubella (MMR) vaccine. The first shot is recommended for children
between 12 and 15 months old and the second between 4 and 6 years
old.
People at high risk for infection who got the shots many years ago
may want to consider getting a booster if they live in an area with
an outbreak, said Scott Weaver with the Global Virus Network, an
international coalition. Those may include family members living
with someone who has measles or those especially vulnerable to
respiratory diseases because of underlying medical conditions.
Adults with “presumptive evidence of immunity” generally don’t need
measles shots now, the CDC said. Criteria include written
documentation of adequate vaccination earlier in life, lab
confirmation of past infection or being born before 1957, when most
people were likely to be infected naturally.
A doctor can order a lab test called an MMR titer to check your
levels of measles antibodies, but health experts don't always
recommend this route and insurance coverage can vary.
Getting another MMR shot is harmless if there are concerns about
waning immunity, the CDC says.
People who have documentation of receiving a live measles vaccine in
the 1960s don’t need to be revaccinated, but people who were
immunized before 1968 with an ineffective measles vaccine made from
“killed” virus should be revaccinated with at least one dose, the
agency said. That also includes people who don’t know which type
they got.
What are the symptoms of measles?
Measles first infects the respiratory tract, then spreads throughout
the body, causing a high fever, runny nose, cough, red, watery eyes
and a rash.
The rash generally appears three to five days after the first
symptoms, beginning as flat red spots on the face and then spreading
downward to the neck, trunk, arms, legs and feet. When the rash
appears, the fever may spike over 104 degrees Fahrenheit, according
to the CDC.
Most kids will recover from measles, but infection can lead to
dangerous complications such as pneumonia, blindness, brain swelling
and death.
How can you treat measles?
There’s no specific treatment for measles, so doctors generally try
to alleviate symptoms, prevent complications and keep patients
comfortable.
Why do vaccination rates matter?
In communities with high vaccination rates — above 95% — diseases
like measles have a harder time spreading through communities. This
is called “herd immunity.”
But childhood vaccination rates have declined nationwide since the
pandemic and more parents are claiming religious or personal
conscience waivers to exempt their kids from required shots.
The U.S. saw a rise in measles cases in 2024, including an outbreak
in Chicago that sickened more than 60.
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AP Science Writer Laura Ungar contributed to this report.
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