NATIONAL NEWS – One child dead in Texas measles outbreak

Laila Kirkpatrick, Staff Writer

One school-age child in West Texas has died from measles. The child was not vaccinated against measles, information that was confirmed by state and local health officials. This death comes a few weeks after a growing outbreak that has spanned West Texas and parts of New Mexico. Over 130 people have been contaminated with measles in the two states most of those sick are children under the age of 18. Measles is a contagious respiratory disease that was declared eliminated from the U.S. in 2000 due to high rates of inoculation with the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine all known as the MMR shot. 

However, in the last five years school vaccination rates have decreased below 95% which is below the CDC’s recommended level for predicting outbreaks. The vaccination rate is far lower in places like Texas County. Texas County is at the center of the current measles outbreak. In this region, the vaccination rate has dropped above 80%. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has said that the U.S. The Department of Health and Human Services is “watching” the outbreak which he described as “not unusual” during a Wednesday meeting of Donald Trump’s cabinet partners. He did not provide specifics regarding how or if the federal agency is assisting on the ground.