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Time Magazine
3 hours ago
- Health
- Time Magazine
Texas Declares End to Its Measles Outbreak
Texas health officials declared on Monday that the measles outbreak that has sickened more than 700 people in the state and killed two children is over—though they warned that the threat posed by the disease is not. It's been more than 42 days since a new measles case has been reported in the West Texas outbreak that began in late January, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS). Public health experts generally consider that to be the marker of the end of a measles outbreak, DSHS said, because 42 days is double the maximum amount of time it can take for a person to show symptoms of measles after being exposed to the virus. There have been 762 confirmed measles cases in the state this year, as of Monday, according to DSHS. The outbreak began in undervaccinated Mennonite communities in Gaines County, and was later linked to measles cases in other states, including New Mexico and Kansas. Two unvaccinated girls in Texas died of measles-related causes earlier this year. In announcing the end of the Texas outbreak, DSHS applauded the state's health care professionals, many of whom had never seen a measles case before this year, for their work. But the department also warned: 'The end of this outbreak does not mean the threat of measles is over.' Measles is highly contagious and can be fatal, though it is vaccine preventable through the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine. The disease was declared eliminated from the U.S. in 2000, an achievement public health experts largely attributed to a successful vaccination program. But MMR vaccination rates have declined in recent years, and measles cases have increased. This year, largely due to the Texas outbreak, the number of measles cases hit a 33-year record high in the U.S. Read More: Do You Need a Measles Vaccine Booster? As of Aug. 5, there have been 1,356 confirmed measles cases across the country this year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Of those, 92% were people who were either unvaccinated or their vaccination status was unknown. In total, there have been three confirmed measles deaths this year: the two unvaccinated children in Texas, and one unvaccinated adult in New Mexico. Before this year, the last time a person was known to have died of measles-related causes in the U.S. was in 2015. Dr. Paul Offit, director of the Vaccine Education Center at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, says that it's reasonable to say that the current Texas outbreak has subsided based on the available data. But he also expresses concern that the official figures are undercounts. Many people in the Mennonite community typically don't seek medical care, he says, so it's possible that some people contracted measles who public health officials weren't aware of. Offit also criticizes the Trump Administration's cuts to the CDC, which he worries could have affected the agency's ability to track cases. Historically, Offit says, measles cases have peaked in the winter months and abated in the spring and summer months, so he fears that the numbers will increase again in a few months. 'I don't think this is the end at all,' Offit says. 'This should be a warning to parents that, if they haven't vaccinated their children, that now's the time.' Concerns about the potential consequences of declining vaccination rates extend beyond measles, as well. Because measles is one of the most contagious viruses, it's often the first to experience a resurgence when vaccination rates fall, public health experts have told TIME, cautioning that the rise in cases could be a sign that other diseases may become more prevalent too. Offit also says that getting measles causes 'immune amnesia,' meaning that after being infected with the disease, a person is more susceptible to other pathogens—even ones that the person's immune system was able to fight off before. Offit calls the Texas outbreak 'a warning shot.' The outbreak, he says, showed that many parents have chosen not to vaccinate their children against measles—and the consequences of that. 'On the one hand it's fine to say that the fear that we all have now can be relaxed by the fact that the virus doesn't appear to be spreading now [in Texas],' Offit says. 'But really, I think the messaging should be one of: that was a warning shot, and several people, including two little girls, paid the price.' 'We can't let that happen again,' he continues. 'It's unconscionable to have a child die of something that is entirely preventable.'
The Hill
6 hours ago
- Health
- The Hill
Texas declares measles outbreak over after 762 confirmed cases
Texas health officials on Monday declared the measles outbreak that began in West Texas earlier this year is now over after more than 700 cases were confirmed. The Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) said that as of Aug. 18, 762 measles cases were confirmed since January, with the majority of infections occurring in children and most cases involving people who were unvaccinated or had unknown vaccination statuses. Two deaths occurred in unvaccinated school-age children who lived in the outbreak area, marking the first U.S. measles death in more than a decade. 'The Texas Department of State Health Services is reporting the end of this year's measles outbreak centered in West Texas. It has been more than 42 days since a new case was reported in any of the counties that previously showed evidence of ongoing transmission,' DSHS said in a statement. The start of the outbreak was linked to a Mennonite community of the South Plains region of Texas among whom vaccination rates are low. In Gaines County, where many of early cases were reported, almost half of all students had exemptions from vaccines. 'I want to highlight the tireless work of the public health professionals across the state who contributed to the containment of one of the most contagious viruses. We arrived at this point through a comprehensive outbreak response that included testing, vaccination, disease monitoring and educating the public about measles through awareness campaigns,' said DSHS Commissioner Jennifer Shuford. Measles is one of the most infectious airborne, respiratory diseases. One infected individual can potentially infect up to 9 out of 10 people they come in contact with if they are not protected. While there are no antivirals specifically indicated for measles, a complete two-dose schedule of the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine is 97 percent effective at preventing measles. The outbreak was seen as an early test for Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has long disparaged MMR vaccines. Despite his criticisms, Kennedy acknowledged the benefits of measles vaccines during the outbreak, writing in an op-ed that they 'not only protect individual children from measles, but also contribute to community immunity.'
Yahoo
6 hours ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Measles outbreak at the center of record US case numbers officially over, Texas says
The outbreak at the epicenter of measles cases reaching a multi-decade high in the U.S. has officially ended, according to Texas health authorities. The Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) declared the outbreak centered in West Texas over as of Monday, Aug. 18, saying that it had been more than 42 days, or two incubation periods, since a new case was reported in the counties that previously showed ongoing transmission. As of Aug. 5, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has reported a total of 1,356 confirmed measles cases across 40 states since the beginning of the year, resulting in three confirmed deaths and 171 hospitalizations. The majority of those cases, 92%, were in people who were unvaccinated or had unknown vaccine status. In Texas, 762 cases were confirmed in total as of Aug. 18, with more than two-thirds occurring in children. More than 94% of cases were in unvaccinated people, according to state DSHS data. Two school-aged children, a 6-year-old and an 8-year-old, died in the state during the outbreak. Texas county at center of largest outbreak in over 20 years Gaines County accounted for more than 54%, or 414, of total Texas cases, many of which were focused in the tight-knit Mennonite community in the area, as previously reported by USA TODAY. Gaines, which has three school districts that are all public, had an abnormally high conscientious (non-medical) vaccine exemption rate of 13.6% in grades K-12 for the 2023-2024 school year, one of the highest in Texas, state health data shows. This was more than five times the statewide average of 2.5%. While Gaines was ground zero, 32 outbreaks (defined as three or more related cases) were recorded across states by the CDC this year, as compared to 16 outbreaks in 2024. Outside of Texas, many pockets of infection were concentrated in nearby states, including New Mexico and Kansas. Measles is a vaccine-preventable disease that had been considered eradicated in the United States as of 2000, meaning there was no spread and new cases were those contracted only from abroad. But vaccinations have declined, resulting in a growing number of states no longer reporting rates consistent with herd immunity, and infections have returned. The last outbreak of a similar scale occurred in 2019, when 1,274 cases were confirmed across the country. What is measles and how do you get it? Measles is a highly contagious, vaccine-preventable disease caused by a virus that primarily, and most severely, afflicts children. According to the World Health Organization, it infects the respiratory tract before spreading throughout the body. The virus is one of the most contagious infectious diseases; so contagious, in fact, that 90% of unvaccinated people who are exposed end up contracting it. Additionally, 1 in 5 of those people end up hospitalized, according to the CDC. The MMR vaccine (measles, mumps and rubella) protects against measles with a 97% efficacy rate and is typically given to children as part of the regular vaccine course at ages 12 to 15 months for the first dose and ages 4 to 6 for the second. What are the symptoms of measles? According to the CDC, measles symptoms appear seven to 14 days after contact with the virus and typically include high fever, cough, runny nose and watery eyes. Measles rashes appear three to five days after the onset of the first symptoms. Other signs and symptoms of measles include: Reddish-brown rash that can spread across the entire body When the rash appears, a person's fever may spike to more than 104 degrees Fahrenheit High fever Cough Runny nose and sneezing Red, watery eyes Loss of appetite, diarrhea Koplik spots, tiny white spots that may appear inside the mouth two to three days after symptoms begin Small raised bumps may also appear on top of the flat red spots (the spots may become joined together as they spread from the head to the rest of the body) This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Texas declares measles outbreak over after more than 700 state cases Solve the daily Crossword
USA Today
6 hours ago
- Health
- USA Today
Measles outbreak at the center of record US case numbers officially over, Texas says
The outbreak at the epicenter of measles cases reaching a multi-decade high in the U.S. has officially ended, according to Texas health authorities. The Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) declared the outbreak centered in West Texas over as of Monday, Aug. 18, saying that it had been more than 42 days, or two incubation periods, since a new case was reported in the counties that previously showed ongoing transmission. As of Aug. 5, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has reported a total of 1,356 confirmed measles cases across 40 states since the beginning of the year, resulting in three confirmed deaths and 171 hospitalizations. The majority of those cases, 92%, were in people who were unvaccinated or had unknown vaccine status. In Texas, 762 cases were confirmed in total as of Aug. 18, with more than two-thirds occurring in children. More than 94% of cases were in unvaccinated people, according to state DSHS data. Two school-aged children, a 6-year-old and an 8-year-old, died in the state during the outbreak. Texas county at center of largest outbreak in over 20 years Gaines County accounted for more than 54%, or 414, of total Texas cases, many of which were focused in the tight-knit Mennonite community in the area, as previously reported by USA TODAY. Gaines, which has three school districts that are all public, had an abnormally high conscientious (non-medical) vaccine exemption rate of 13.6% in grades K-12 for the 2023-2024 school year, one of the highest in Texas, state health data shows. This was more than five times the statewide average of 2.5%. While Gaines was ground zero, 32 outbreaks (defined as three or more related cases) were recorded across states by the CDC this year, as compared to 16 outbreaks in 2024. Outside of Texas, many pockets of infection were concentrated in nearby states, including New Mexico and Kansas. Measles is a vaccine-preventable disease that had been considered eradicated in the United States as of 2000, meaning there was no spread and new cases were those contracted only from abroad. But vaccinations have declined, resulting in a growing number of states no longer reporting rates consistent with herd immunity, and infections have returned. The last outbreak of a similar scale occurred in 2019, when 1,274 cases were confirmed across the country. What is measles and how do you get it? Measles is a highly contagious, vaccine-preventable disease caused by a virus that primarily, and most severely, afflicts children. According to the World Health Organization, it infects the respiratory tract before spreading throughout the body. The virus is one of the most contagious infectious diseases; so contagious, in fact, that 90% of unvaccinated people who are exposed end up contracting it. Additionally, 1 in 5 of those people end up hospitalized, according to the CDC. The MMR vaccine (measles, mumps and rubella) protects against measles with a 97% efficacy rate and is typically given to children as part of the regular vaccine course at ages 12 to 15 months for the first dose and ages 4 to 6 for the second. What are the symptoms of measles? According to the CDC, measles symptoms appear seven to 14 days after contact with the virus and typically include high fever, cough, runny nose and watery eyes. Measles rashes appear three to five days after the onset of the first symptoms. Other signs and symptoms of measles include:
Yahoo
8 hours ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Measles outbreak ends in West Texas, health officials say
(Reuters) -The measles outbreak in West Texas has ended, state health officials said on Monday, after meeting the criteria of six weeks since the last reported case. Texas is now shifting focus to vaccination campaigns to strengthen immunity and prevent future outbreaks, the Department of State Health Services (DSHS) said. The outbreak, which began in late January, led to 762 confirmed cases as of August 18, with 99 hospitalizations and two fatalities in school-aged children, according to the state's health department. Texas led a surge in cases nationally, with the United States recording its largest outbreak since the disease was declared eliminated in the United States in 2000. While the Texas DSHS will continue to monitor the cases, it has decided to discontinue its interactive outbreak dashboard. "The end of this outbreak does not mean the threat of measles is over. Since there are ongoing outbreaks of measles in North America and around the world, it is likely that there will be additional cases of measles this year in Texas," the DSHS said. Measles is a highly contagious viral infection that causes symptoms such as fever, cough and a characteristic rash. It can also lead to severe complications like pneumonia and encephalitis. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has reported 1,356 confirmed measles cases nationally as of August 5, but the updates have been delayed following the August 8 shooting on its Atlanta headquarters, the CDC said. "We remain in close communication with public health partners and jurisdictions reporting measles and will resume regular data updates as soon as possible," a CDC spokesperson said. Solve the daily Crossword
