(NEW YORK) -- Stocks futures traded slightly higher early Wednesday, following another volatile day for the market amid the continued rollout of President Donald Trump's tariffs on goods from top U.S. trading partners.
Dow futures were higher by 189 points or 0.46%. Both the Nasdaq and S&P 500 also appeared ready to open narrowly higher on Wednesday.
Traders are expected to be looking to Wednesday's inflation report for clues on the health of the economy amid Trump's escalting trade war. Expectations are that inflation will be up 2.9% compared to a year ago. A worse-than-expected report could add to negative stock sentiment.
Trumpâs 25% tariffs on all imported steel and aluminum products came into effect overnight. The European Commission said EU member states would retaliate with duties on U.S. goods, sending European markets mostly higher.
Some economists say that while the tariffs could boost the local steel industry in the United States, they could also lead to higher prices for industries that purchase steel. Those higher prices may eventually reach consumers.
The U.S. relies heavily on imported aluminum and those costs are expected go up as well.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
(WASHINGTON) -- An inflation report to be released on Wednesday will provide a fresh gauge of economic performance under President Donald Trump as markets slide and recession fears swell in response to an escalating trade war.
Economists expect the data to show that inflation eased in February.
Consumer prices are expected to have risen 2.9% over the year ending in February, which would amount to a slight slowdown from a 3% rate recorded in January.
Analysts and households alike will closely watch for movement in egg prices, which soared 53% in January compared to a year ago. Bird flu has decimated the egg supply, lifting prices higher.
The Trump administration has started investigating egg producers to learn if market practices have contributed to the price hikes, a source familiar with the matter told ABC News.
Inflation has fallen dramatically since a peak of about 9% in 2022, but a recent acceleration of price increases has placed inflation a percentage point higher than the Federal Reserve's target rate of 2%.
If the report reveals a cooldown in February, that could soften pressure on the Federal Reserve, which bears responsibility for keeping inflation under control.
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell last week said the administration's tariff plan would likely raise prices for U.S. shoppers and retailers
The scale and duration of the tariffs remain unclear, but a portion of the taxes on imports will probably reach consumers, Powell told an economic forum in New York City last week.
"We're at a stage where we're still very uncertain about what will be tariffed, for how long, at what level," Powell said. "But the likelihood is some of that will find its way. It will hit the exporters, the importers, the retailers and to some extent consumers."
The stock market has plunged since Trump imposed tariffs on Mexico, Canada and China last week, giving rise to warnings on Wall Street about a potential economic downturn. Within days, Trump delayed some of the tariffs on Canada and Mexico.
On multiple occasions in recent days, the White House declined to rule out a possible recession, saying the tariffs would require a "period of transition."
A solid, albeit disappointing jobs report on Friday exacerbated concerns among some observers.
Employers hired 151,000 workers last month, falling short of expectations of 170,000 jobs added. The unemployment rate ticked up to 4.1%, which remains a historically low figure.
The Trump administration slapped 25% tariffs on goods from Mexico and Canada, as well as 10% tariffs on imports from China. The fresh round of duties on Chinese goods doubled an initial set of tariffs placed on China last month.
A day later, Trump issued a one-month delay for tariffs on auto-related goods from Mexico and Canada. The carve-out expanded soon afterward with an additional one-month pause for goods from Mexico and Canada compliant with the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA, a free trade agreement.
On Tuesday, Trump announced plans to add another 25% tariff on Canadian steel and aluminum, bringing the total to 50%. The move came in response to threats made by Ontario to cut off electricity to parts of the U.S., Trump said.
Hours later, Ontario Premier Doug Ford issued a joint statement with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick on X announcing the suspension of the 25% surcharge on electricity sent to the U.S.
The tariffs slapped on Canada, Mexico and China are widely expected to increase prices paid by U.S. shoppers, since importers typically pass along a share of the cost of those higher taxes to consumers.
A key gauge of consumer confidence registered its largest monthly drop since August 2021, the nonpartisan Conference Board said in February.
The share of consumers who expect a recession within the next year surged to a nine-month high, the data showed. A growing portion of consumers believe the job market will worsen, the stock market will fall and interest rates will rise, the report added.
ABC News' Katherine Faulders and Soo Youn contributed to this report.
Li Hongbo / Feature China/Future Publishing via Getty Images
(WASHINGTON) -- U.S. tariffs on imported steel and aluminum are now in effect, part of an escalating series of trade maneuvers by President Donald Trump that have unsettled markets.
As of Wednesday, the U.S. is imposing 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports from all trading partners with no exceptions or exemptions, according to an earlier statement by the White House.
Products that are expected to be impacted include canned goods, vehicles and washing machines.
Baseball bats, sewing needles and lamps could also go up in price.
While the tariff is being slapped on imports from all countries, the U.S. imports more steel and aluminum from Canada than any other country.
The 25% tariffs go into effect just a day after Trump threatened to double the tariff specifically on Canada amid an intensifying tit-for-tat between the two countries over Trump's tariff policies.
Earlier this week, Ontario Premier Doug Ford threatened to impose a 25% surcharge on electricity from the province sent to U.S. customers in response to earlier U.S. tariffs on Canadian goods.
That led to a threat from Trump to up the tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum imports to 50%.
Trump later reversed course after an agreement was reached and Ford pulled back his threat to impose the electricity surcharge.
âAfter President Trump threatened to use his executive powers to retaliate with a colossal 50 percent tariff against Canada, Ontario Premier Doug Ford spoke with Secretary Lutnick to convey that he is backing down on implementing a 25 percent charge on electricity exports to the United States," White House spokesman Kush Desai said in a statement.
Ford will travel to Washington, D.C., for a meeting with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick on trade.
ABC News' Zunaira Zaki contributed to this report.
(NEW YORK) -- The major U.S. airlines thought they were going to have a strong first quarter, but things are not going as well as expected.
Each of the major U.S. airlines has put out guidance pointing to significant economic uncertainty that is directly affecting their domestic bookings this spring.
For its part, Delta was sure this would be a strong first quarter, but this morning the airline's CEO admitted they were wrong.
Speaking out Tuesday during the J.P. Morgan industrials conference in New York, Southwest, United and American all echoed the same message.
The reasons: Two major plane incidents -- including the deadly midair collision between an American Airlines regional jet and U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter over Washington, D.C. -- the uncertain economic future, plummeting government travel and reductions to corporate travel.
Overall, bookings fell after the deadly Jan. 29 D.C. crash, rebounded a bit, and then fell again after the Feb. 17 crash in Toronto, in which a regional jet crashed upon landing, overturned and caught fire.
"It caused a lot of shock amongst consumers. Thereâs a whole generation of consumers that didnât realize these things can happen," Delta CEO Ed Bastian said during the J.P. Morgan conference on Tuesday.
Consumer confidence is unsettled and companies are waiting to see how things shake out. While companies wait, they are booking fewer seats.
Delta expects revenue to be down $500 million -- or 4% less than it anticipated this quarter.
Airlines say they will cut capacity -- reducing the number of seats they are flying -- in order to stabilize the market.
American Airlines has taken a significant hit at the D.C.'s Ronald Reagan National Airport from both the January crash and reductions in government travel.
The airline is reducing capacity there to limit the losses.
United says government travel is down 50%.
One bright spot: Airlines say despite the domestic bookings being weak, international travel remains strong -- and airlines believe this summer will still be strong.
WEST TEXAS (AP) – 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’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.
How many measles cases are there in Texas and New Mexico?
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 stateâs 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 âassociatedâ with the West Texas and New Mexico outbreaks.
Measles cases have been reported in Alaska, California, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Vermont.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention defines an outbreak as three or more related cases â 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.
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 âpresumptive evidence of immunityâ generally donât 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 donât need to be revaccinated, but people who were immunized before 1968 with an ineffective measles vaccine made from âkilledâ virus should be revaccinated with at least one dose, the agency said. That also includes people who donât 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.
How can you treat measles?
Thereâs 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 â above 95% â diseases like measles have a harder time spreading through communities. This is called âherd immunity.â
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.
AUSTIN (AP) â A Texas appeals court on Tuesday halted the execution of a man who has spent more than 30 years on death row and had been set to die by lethal injection this week over the killings of six girls and young women found buried in the desert near El Paso.
It was the second scheduled execution in the U.S. halted on Tuesday after a federal judge stopped Louisianaâs first death row execution using nitrogen gas, which was to take place next week.
In Texas, the order was another reprieve for David Leonard Wood, who in 2009 was about 24 hours away from execution when it was halted over claims he is intellectually disabled and thus ineligible for execution.
Those claims were later rejected by a judge and Wood, 67, had been set to die Thursday. But the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, the state’s highest criminal court, issued a stay of execution after his latest appeal, which renewed his claims of innocence.
The court put Wood’s execution on pause âuntil further order.” It did not elaborate on the decision in a brief three-page order.
Had Wood been executed this week, he would have spent 32 years and two months on Texasâ death row, the longest time a Texas inmate has waited before being put to death.
The 1987 murders remained unsolved for several years until authorities say Wood bragged to a cellmate that he was the so-called âDesert Killer.â The victimsâ bodies were found buried in shallow graves in the same desert area northeast of El Paso.
Authorities said Wood gave rides to the victims and then drove them into the desert, where he sexually assaulted and killed them. The victims were Rosa Casio and Ivy Williams, both 23; Karen Baker, 21; Angelica Frausto, 17; Desiree Wheatley, 15; and Dawn Smith, 14.
Two other girls and a young woman were also reported missing but were never found.
Wood, a repeat convicted sex offender who had worked as a mechanic, has long maintained his innocence.
âI did not do it. I am innocent of this case. Iâll fight it,â Wood said in recent documents filed in his appeals.
On March 4, the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles declined a request to commute his death sentence to a lesser penalty or grant him a 90-day reprieve.
His lawyers have for years sought to have hundreds of pieces of evidence tested for DNA after testing in 2011 of bloodstains on the clothing Smith wore found a male DNA profile that was not Wood. The Texas Attorney Generalâs Office has fought against new DNA tests and various courts have denied Woodâs request for it.
Prior to the court’s decision Tuesday, Gregory Wiercioch, one of Woodâs attorneys, said that when authorities identified Wood as a suspect, they focused on him and not on the evidence they had.
âWeâve tried to make it clear to the courts that heâs innocent, and weâll see if anyone listens,â Wiercioch said.
TYLER – The East Texas Human Needs Network (ETHNN) has merged with Goodwill Industries of East Texas, Inc. ETHNN is a diverse group of organizations and individuals that work together to strengthen the programs, connection, and improve awareness of services that meet essential human needs. Goodwill often serves as a resource center for many of these same human needs. Goodwillâs programs are based in education and skills training designed to help individuals meet their needs through employment. Continue reading East Texas Human Needs Network merges with Goodwill
HALLSVILLE â One person was killed after a high-speed chase ended in them crashing into a Hallsville Church on Monday night. According to our news partner KETK, the driver was identified as 29-year-old Jason Thomas Hart of Longview.
Harrison County Sheriff’s Office received a call at 10:47 p.m. about a suspicious vehicle driving through the Mason Creek Mobile Home Park. The caller said that a dark-colored sedan was driving in circles in front yards and nearly hit several residences. Minutes later, deputies saw the vehicle matching the same description running a stop sign at the intersection of FM 968 and FM 450. Deputies continued their pursuit on FM 450 north, as Hart ignored lights and sirens.
Hart continued fleeing law enforcement, driving erratically, with speeds as fast as 114 mph. Eventually the chase entered Hallsville. As he entered the intersection of FM 450 and U.S. Highway 80, Hart left the roadway on the west part of FM 450, hitting the wall and awning of The First Baptist Church of Hallsville. Deputies attempted to render aid to Jason Hart, but he died at the scene. Officials said case is being investigated under the guidance of the Texas Department of Public Safety.
HOUSTON (AP) – Mourners in Houston paid tribute to the late U.S. Rep. Sylvester Turner of Texas as he lay in state at city hall Tuesday, part of a week of public events to honor the Democratic lawmaker and former mayor.
Turner, 70, died on March 5, just weeks into his first term in the House and only hours after attending President Donald Trump’s address to Congress in Washington. His family said he died at his home following health complications.
Residents observed a memorial at Houston City Hall, where Turner served as mayor for eight years before being elected to Congress in November. Houston Mayor John Whitmire made brief remarks to mourners and the Houston Symphony performed while visitors paid their respects.
âSylvester knew each and every community, and he treated everyone with equality and inclusion,” Whitmire said. “Thatâs what made him really special. He brought that public service and that message across not only our great city, but our great state.â
Turner had filled the House seat held by longtime Democratic Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, who died in July. Prior to becoming mayor, Turner served as a legislator in the Texas House of Representatives for 27 years.
Turner is also scheduled to lie in state at the Texas Capitol beginning Thursday. His funeral is scheduled for Saturday in Houston.
Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has not yet announced when a special election will be held for Turner’s seat.
AMARILLO (AP) – A federal appeals court has tossed an Amarillo womanâs death sentence after it found that local prosecutors had failed to reveal that their primary trial witness was a paid informant.
With a 2-1 decision, the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals last week sent Brittany Marlowe Holbergâs 1998 murder conviction back down to the trial court to decide how to proceed.
Holberg has been on death row for 27 years. In securing her conviction in 1998, Randall County prosecutors heavily relied on testimony from a jail inmate who was working as a confidential informant for the City of Amarillo police. That informant recanted her testimony in 2011, but neither a Texas Court of Criminal Appeals or a federal district court found that prosecutors had violated Holbergâs constitutional right to a fair trial.
The appeals court disagreed, saying that the informant was critical to the juryâs determination of guilt and that the prosecution violated Holbergâs due process rights by hiding information that, according to a landmark U.S. Supreme court ruling, must be disclosed. Writing for the majority, judge Patrick E. Higginbotham cast Holbergâs case as a blight on the criminal justice system.
âWe pause only to acknowledge that 27 years on death row is a reality dimming the light that ought to attend proceedings where a life is at stake, a stark reminder that the jurisprudence of capital punishment remains a work in progress,â wrote Higginbotham, a Ronald Reagan appointee.
Holberg was sentenced to death by an Amarillo jury when she was 23 years old. The jury found her guilty of murdering A.B. Towery, an 80-year-old man and former client of Holberg, a sex worker. During trial, Holberg asserted that she acted in self-defense and that she stabbed Towery because she feared for her life and sought to protect herself after he struck her on the back of the head and refused to relent.
The prosecution, however, presented testimony from Holbergâs jail cellmate Vickie Marie Kirkpatrick, who alleged that Holberg had admitted to killing Towery âin order to get moneyâ and said she âwould do it all over again for more drugs.â
Kirkpatrick was at the time working as a confidential informant for the City of Amarillo police, a fact prosecutors did not disclose. They instead presented Kirkpatrick as a âdisinterested individual who âwanted to do the right thing,ââ Higginbotham wrote.
Holberg had experienced severe and repeated sexual abuse during her childhood and fell into a crack cocaine addiction. She turned to sex work to support her addiction, according to court documents.
On Nov. 13, 1996, she had a minor traffic accident and then sought refuge in Toweryâs apartment. A heated argument turned violent, leaving Towery dead with part of a lamp lodged within his throat. Holberg left the apartment cut, bruised and bleeding from her head where Towery struck her.
While in jail, the Randall County District Attorneyâs Office approached multiple inmates to question them about Holberg, offering them a deal in exchange for testimony. Kirkpatrick, who was placed in the same cell as Holberg, produced a statement detailing an alleged admission from Holberg. That same day, Kirkpatrick was released on bond.
In a lone dissent, circuit judge Stuart Kyle Duncan, a Donald Trump appointee, wrote that the jury did not solely rely on Kirkpatrickâs testimony to reach their decision of guilt.
âThe jury was presented with graphic physical evidence that Holberg sadistically butchered a sick old manâwith a lamp rammed down his throat as the coup de grĂące,â Duncan wrote. âThat evidence doomed Holbergâs self-defense theory and there is no chance that impeaching Kirkpatrick would have resurrected it.â
Randall County District Attorney Robert Love, who was the assistant district attorney when Holbergâs case was first prosecuted, said in an emailed statement that he was âdisappointedâ by the 5th Circuitâs ruling. He declined to comment further on the case until the Texas Office of the Attorney General decides how to proceed. âThey are currently discussing the legal options available,â Love said.
Holbergâs attorneys didnât immediately respond to The Texas Tribuneâs request for comment on Monday. A Texas Department of Criminal Justice spokesperson said the agency had no comment on Holbergâs case. Holberg is currently being held at the Patrick L. OâDaniel Unit, a Gatesville prison that houses females on death row, among other inmates.
Texas leads the country in executions and is among the top three in imposing death sentences. The stateâs use of capital punishment has waned, however, and the number of people on death row has dropped by more than half over the past twenty five years. There are 174 people on Texasâ death row, and seven of them are women.
NACOGDOCHES â Our news partners at KETK report that Advanced Practice Registered Nurses could soon have full practice authority in rural East Texas. Rep. Joanne Shofner filed HB 2532 on Feb. 6 that would allow APRNs to practice as independent practitioners. The bill will give APRNs the ability to treat health problems and prescribe medications (including controlled substances). In order to qualify, APRNâs must apply to the Texas Board of Nursing and pay an application fee. The deadline for the fee will vary by program and school. Advanced Practice Registered Nurses (APRN) range from nurse practitioners, nurse midwives, nurse anesthetists and clinical nurse specialists. Continue reading Rep. Shofner introduces bill to improve healthcare in rural East Texas
SAN ANTONIO – The San Antonio Express-News reports The woman convicted of killing Selena Quintanilla believes she has served her time as her parole eligibility fast approaches, a relative recently told the New York Post. Yolanda SaldĂvar, a San Antonio native, was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole after 30 years for the murder of the 23-year-old “Queen of Tejano” at a Corpus Christi hotel on March 31, 1995. SaldĂvar is now 64 years old. The relative, who was not named in the article, told the Post that SaldĂvar “feels like she’s a political prisoner at this point,” adding, “Enough is enough.” SaldĂvar was the president of Quintanilla’s fan club before she killed the singer after the star confronted her over embezzlement alegations, which SaldĂvar has denied. Quintanilla had conquered the Spanish music scene and was on the verge of an English crossover before she was shot and killed two weeks before her 24th birthday.
AUSTIN – The San Antonio Express-News says Republican state leaders pushing a private school voucher plan have emphasized it would transform the face of education in Texas. They also say its cost would be limited to $1 billion for the first year. But projections from the nonpartisan Legislative Budget Board show demand for the program providing students with taxpayer funds to subsidize homeschooling or private education options could quickly outpace that initial investment, pressuring lawmakers to pour more and more money into it, while pulling millions from public schools. According to the LBB, demand for the program is projected to grow from $1 billion worth of vouchers for its first year of operation in 2027 to $3.2 billion the following year, then $3.8 billion and $4.6 billion by 2030. In other words, the $1 billion budget line on this bienniumâs state budget could grow to more than $8 billion over the two-year period up for approval by the Legislature in 2029 as more and more students seek a voucher.
State Sen. Brandon Creighton, a Conroe Republican carrying his chamberâs version of the voucher bill, Senate Bill 2, has described the fiscal note as a âfairy taleâ because lawmakers would need to sign off on any future funding increases. âSenate Bill 2 is entirely subject to a future appropriations process and the Legislature making a decision to grow the population of students served,â he said during a committee hearing earlier this year. Although the programâs initial investment would be set at $1 billion under Creightonâs bill, there are other pathways to grow it, even without lawmakersâ support. Gov. Greg Abbott, the stateâs biggest voucher proponent, has been able to circumvent the Legislature for funding increases in the past, namely with his ongoing border security initiative, Operation Lone Star, which began with an appropriation from the Legislature of less than $3 billion. Abbott grew the program by billions more while the Legislature was out of session by moving money amongst state agencies with the approval of a small group of lawmakers, including Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and the House speaker. Critics warn the same thing could happen with vouchers. âWhat will most likely happen based on what weâve seen in other states, to start drawing down those dollars⊠itâs really unlimited,â said Jaime Puente, a policy analyst with the left-leaning group Every Texan who is critical of vouchers. âItâs really an unlimited amount of funding, an unlimited amount of seats that people will be advertised to with state dollars.â
(AUSTIN, Texas) -- The measles outbreak in western Texas is continuing to grow with 25 cases confirmed over the last five days, bringing the total to 223 cases, according to new data published Tuesday.
Almost all of the cases are in unvaccinated individuals or in individuals whose vaccination status is unknown, with 80 unvaccinated and 138 of unknown status, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS). At least 29 people have been hospitalized so far.
Just five cases have occurred in people vaccinated with one dose of the measles, mumps, rubella (MMR) vaccine, according to the data.
The new data in Texas comes as the Oklahoma State Department of Health (OSDH) reported two "probable" cases of measles in the state on Tuesday
The department said the patients had exposure "associated with the Texas and New Mexico outbreak" and are reporting experiencing symptoms consistent with measles. OSDH said there's currently no public health threat associated with the two cases.
In the Texas outbreak, children and teenagers between ages 5 and 17 make up the majority of cases at 98, followed by children ages 4 and under at 76 cases, according to the data.
"Due to the highly contagious nature of this disease, additional cases are likely to occur in the outbreak area and the surrounding communities. DSHS is working with local health departments to investigate the outbreak," the department said in a press release.
So far, just one death has been reported in an unvaccinated school-aged child, according to the DSHS. The child did not have any known underlying conditions, according to the department.
The Texas death was the first measles death recorded in the U.S. in a decade, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
A possible second measles death was recorded last week after an unvaccinated New Mexico resident tested positive for the virus. The New Mexico Department of Health said the official cause of death is still under investigation.
Gaines County is the epicenter of the Texas outbreak, with 156 cases confirmed among residents, according to the DSHS. State health data shows the number of vaccine exemptions in Gaines County has grown dramatically.
In 2013, roughly 7.5% of kindergartners in the county had parents or guardians who filed for an exemption for at least one vaccine. Ten years later, that number rose to more than 17.5% -- one of the highest in all of Texas, according to state health data.
As of Thursday, the CDC has confirmed a total of 222 cases in 12 states so far this year in Alaska, California, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Texas and Washington.
The total, however, is likely an undercount due to delays in reporting from states to the federal government.
The majority of nationally confirmed cases are in people who are unvaccinated or whose vaccination status is unknown. Of the cases, 4% are among those who received one dose of the MMR shot and 2% are among those who received two doses, according to the CDC.
Children and teenagers also make up the majority of cases in Texas with 175 infections confirmed among those ages 19 and under, CDC data shows.
Measles is one of the most contagious diseases known to humans. Just one infected patient can spread measles to up to nine out of 10 susceptible close contacts, according to the CDC.
Health officials have been urging anyone who isn't vaccinated to receive the MMR vaccine.
The CDC currently recommends that people receive two vaccine doses, the first at ages 12 to 15 months and the second between 4 and 6 years old. One dose is 93% effective, and two doses are 97% effective, the CDC says. Most vaccinated adults don't need a booster.
For those living in the outbreak area, Texas health officials are recommending that parents consider an early dose of the MMR vaccine for children between 6 months and 11 months, and that adults receive a second MMR dose if they only received one in the past.
Last week, the CDC said in a post on X that it was on the ground in Texas, partnering with DSHS officials to respond to the measles outbreak.
Measles was declared eliminated from the U.S. in 2000 due to the highly effective vaccination program, according to the CDC. However, CDC data shows vaccination rates have been lagging in recent years.
ABC News Youri Benadjaoud contributed to this report.
TEXARKANA â The Texarkana Police Department is currently searching for a driver who was involved in a hit and run that left a woman critically injured on Friday, according to our news partners at KETK. Texarkana PD said a woman pedestrian was critically injured after she was hit by a white SUV in the 2300 block of New Boston Road at around 10:20 p.m. on Friday night. Officials are searching for the driver and are asking anyone who lives near the hit and run scene to check their security cameras for a white SUV in the area near that time. âWeâve been working non-stop all weekend to track down the driver, but we still havenât been able to identify the vehicle. If you live or work in the area, please check your security cameras! If you see anything that might helpâno matter how smallâplease reach out to us. It could well be the break that we need.â Anyone information can contact Texarkana PD by phone at 903-798-3876 and any video can be submitted to the Texarkana Police Department online through their new online evidence portal.
