Measles cases rise to 146 in outbreak that led to first US measles death in 10 years
The number of cases — Texas' largest in nearly 30 years — increased by 22 since Tuesday. The Texas Department of State Health Services said cases span over nine counties in Texas and 20 patients have been hospitalized.
The child who died Tuesday night in the outbreak is the first U.S. death from the highly contagious but preventable respiratory disease since 2015, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the nation's top health official and a vaccine critic, said Wednesday that the U.S. Department of the Health and Human Services was watching cases but dismissed the outbreak as "not unusual."
But on Friday afternoon, Kennedy said in a post on X that his heart went out to families impacted by the outbreak, and he recognized "the serious impact of this outbreak on families, children, and healthcare workers."
Kennedy also said his agency will continue to fund Texas' immunization program and that ending the outbreak is a "top priority" for him and his team.
The virus has largely spread through rural, oil rig-dotted West Texas, with cases concentrated in a "close-knit, undervaccinated" Mennonite community, state health department spokesperson Lara Anton has said.
Gaines County has a strong homeschooling and private school community. It is also home to one of the highest rates of school-aged children in Texas who have opted out of at least one required vaccine, with nearly 14% skipping a required dose last school year.
Texas law allows children to get an exemption from school vaccines for reasons of conscience, including religious beliefs. Anton has said the number of unvaccinated kids in Gaines County is likely significantly higher because homeschooled children's data would not be reported.
The measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine is safe and highly effective at preventing infection and severe cases. The first shot is recommended for children ages 12 to 15 months, and the second for ages 4 to 6 years. Most kids will recover from measles, but infection can lead to dangerous complications such as pneumonia, blindness, brain swelling and death.
Vaccination rates have declined nationwide since the COVID-19 pandemic, and most states are below the 95% vaccination threshold for kindergartners — the level needed to protect communities against measles outbreaks.
The U.S. had considered measles eliminated in 2000, which meant there had been a halt in continuous spread of the disease for at least a year. Measles cases rose in 2024, including a Chicago outbreak that sickened more than 60.
Eastern New Mexico has nine cases of measles, but the state health department said there is no connection to the outbreak in West Texas.
At a news conference Friday in Austin, officials urged people to get vaccinated if they are not already.
"We're here to say quite simply: Measles can kill, ignorance can kill and vaccine denial definitely kills," said U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett, a Democrat.
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Voice of America
11-03-2025
- Voice of America
Measles cases rising in southwestern US as more states report infections
Measles outbreaks in West Texas and New Mexico are now up to more than 250 cases, and two unvaccinated people have died from measles-related causes. Measles is caused by a highly contagious virus that is 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. Texas state health officials said Tuesday there were 25 new cases of measles since the end of last week, bringing Texas' total to 223. Twenty-nine people in Texas are hospitalized. New Mexico health officials announced three new cases Tuesday, bringing the state's total to 33. The outbreak has spread from Lea County, which neighbors the West Texas communities at the epicenter of the outbreak, to include one case in Eddy County. Oklahoma's state health department reported two probable cases of measles Tuesday, saying they are associated with the West Texas and New Mexico outbreaks. A school-age child died of measles in Texas last month, and New Mexico reported its first measles-related death in an adult last week. Measles cases have been reported in Alaska, California, Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention defines an outbreak as three or more related cases — and there have been three clusters that qualified as outbreaks in 2025. 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. 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. There's no specific treatment for measles, so doctors generally try to alleviate symptoms, prevent complications and keep patients comfortable.
Voice of America
09-03-2025
- Voice of America
March 9, 2025
4 A woman throws feathers during an anti-vaccine protest, on the COVID-19 Day of Reflection, marking 5 years since the start of the pandemic, in London.
Voice of America
03-03-2025
- Voice of America
Rise in ADHD Cases Raises Questions
Allison Burk's daughter was struggling. The American teenager had uncontrolled emotions, a decreased ability to pay attention and trouble completing work on time. A family doctor suggested testing for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD. This led to an unexpected discovery: The teen had ADHD, and her mother, Allison Burk, did too. During her daughter's testing, Burk thought, 'Wait a minute. This sounds familiar.' 'I was able to piece together that this might be something I was experiencing,' said Burk, who lives in Columbus, Ohio. She sought testing for herself and was diagnosed with ADHD — at 42 years old. More adults are being diagnosed with ADHD. Diagnoses have been rising for at least 20 years but seem to have increased sharply in the last few years. A recent government study suggested that more than 15 million adults in the United States — about 1 in 17 — have been diagnosed with ADHD. The condition starts in childhood, but about half of adults with ADHD are diagnosed when they are 18 or older. Some doctors say the number of people seeking ADHD testing is sharply increasing. 'Just in our clinic, requests for assessments have doubled in the last two years,' said Justin Barterian. He is a psychologist based at Ohio State University. Signs of ADHD in adults ADHD makes it hard for people to pay attention and control their behaviors. The disorder can be genetic. Doctors often treat the disorder with drugs, behavioral therapy, or both. Judy Sandler is 62 years old and lives in the U.S. state of Maine. She was diagnosed in her 50s. Sandler describes what ADHD feels like for her. 'It's like there's an engine in you and you feel like it's always running, and you can't turn it off except with medication,' Sandler said. ADHD has been called the most commonly diagnosed mental health disorder in American children. More than 7 million children in the U.S. have been diagnosed. The disorder was once thought to be something that resolved as children became adults. But now, experts say they believe that many people are not diagnosed as kids and that the disorder continues into adulthood. Adults with the condition talk about having trouble focusing on immediate responsibilities and planning their time. Some say the disorder has led to problems in their personal relationships. Diagnoses have been rising Diagnoses have been increasing in both kids and adults. The recent government report also found adult ADHD was more common than earlier estimates had suggested. 'We haven't had (federal) adult ADHD data in a long time,' said Angelika Claussen. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention researcher was one of the study's writers. There were signs of the rise, she added. Increasing demand for ADHD medication led to severe shortages after the COVID-19 pandemic hit in March 2020. A 2023 study showed the rise in prescriptions, or doctors' orders for such medication, was notable in adults — especially among women. ADHD diagnoses and medication were increasing before the pandemic. This is partly because of a change in general diagnostic measures in 2013. Those changes expanded the definition of ADHD and reduced the number of signs, or symptoms, required for diagnosis. But cases really seemed to increase in 2020, when schools closed and many adults were forced to work from home. 'It's very difficult to focus when you are home and you have kids,' Claussen said. She said such conditions may have worsened ADHD symptoms in people with less severe cases. How ADHD is diagnosed in adults Experts say that it was long believed that ADHD was underdiagnosed in adults. Now, experts debate about whether it has become over-diagnosed. There is no blood or brain test for the disorder. Experts say it is diagnosed when symptoms cause ongoing problems in more than one area of life, and when those symptoms began in early childhood. Experts say the best way professionals diagnose ADHD is by getting careful histories from patients and from people who know them. They also might test a patient's memory and ability to focus. But getting an appointment with a mental health professional can take months. And assessments can cost thousands of dollars. Many people turn to family doctors. People also take online diagnostic tests, some of which are linked to health companies that prescribe medications. 'There is a wide variability in this country in how people diagnose, how strict they are, and who they diagnose,' said Margaret Sibley. She is psychologist at University of Washington. The American Professional Society of ADHD and Related Disorders is preparing a set of diagnosis and treatment guidelines for American health professionals who treat adults. Sibley is leading the work on the guidelines, which the organization expects to release later this year. I'm Anna Matteo. And I'm Jill Robbins. Mike Stobbe reported this story for the Associated Press from New York, New York. Anna Matteo adapted it for VOA Learning English. The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute's Science and Educational Media Group and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content. __________________________________________________ Words in This Story teenager -n. someone who is between 13 and 19 years old familiar -adj. frequently seen or experienced diagnose -v. to recognize a disease or condition in clinic -n. a place for the treatment of people needing medical help who do not stay overnight assessment -n. the action or an instance of making a judgment about something psychologist -n. a person who specializes in the study of mind and behavior or in the treatment of mental, emotional, and behavioral disorders focus -v. to cause to be concentrated prescribe -v. to order or direct the use of something as a remedy variable -adj. able or likely to change : variability -n. strict -adj. completely correct : exact : precise
