US: Second child dies of measles in Texas, hundreds sick
Texas: A measles outbreak in southwestern United States has claimed the life of a second child, officials confirmed on Sunday.
"We are deeply saddened to report that a school-aged child who was recently diagnosed with measles has passed away," Aaron Davis, vice president of UMC Health System, a medical center in Texas, told AFP news agency.
Davis added that the child, who had been receiving treatment for "complications of measles," did not have any underlying conditions and was not vaccinated against the highly infectious disease.
In February, a child died of measles in the first death from the illness in the US in over a decade. The outbreak began in late January in Gaines County, a remote area in western Texas where the vaccination rate is lower than the protective rate of 95%.
In March, an adult's death in the neighboring state of New Mexico was also classified as a measles-related death.
Kennedy calls for vaccinations
Robert F. Kennedy Jr , US President Donald Trump's health secretary, took to social media platform X on Sunday, saying "the most effective way to prevent the spread of measles is the MMR vaccine."
Kennedy is known for downplaying the importance of vaccines, which has alarmed healthcare experts across the nation. He has also described taking vaccines as a personal choice.
Davis from the Texas medical centre said that the second measles death "underscores the importance of vaccination."
Kennedy said that 642 cases of measles have been confirmed in 22 states, with 499 of them in Texas alone.
He made the comments during a trip to Texas to meet the families of the two children who died of the illness.
Trump, however, downplayed the outbreak when questioned by reporters onboard the Air Force One, saying it was "so far a fairly small number of people relative to what we're talking about." He promised "very strong action" would be taken if things worsened.
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