West Texas doctors urging vaccination after measles death: ‘This is a big deal’

WEST TEXAS – The Dallas Morning News reports that after a pediatric patient in West Texas died of measles complications, hospital officials are urging the community to take the outbreak seriously, and to educate themselves about the virus and vaccination. Texas health officials on Wednesday reported the first person ? a school-aged child ? has died in the state’s ongoing measles outbreak after being hospitalized in Lubbock. It’s the first measles death in the U.S. in a decade, according to numerous news reports. Officials Covenant Children’s Hospital in Lubbock said the child was not from Lubbock County, but declined to provide any additional information in a Wednesday afternoon news briefing. Dr. Amy Thompson, the CEO at Covenant Children’s, said the death makes clear that measles outbreaks are serious.

“This is a big deal,” Thompson said. “We have known that we’ve had measles in our community. We’re now seeing a very serious consequence of what happens when we have measles in our community.” The ongoing outbreak began in a Mennonite community in Gaines County, according to state health officials. The Texas Department of State Health Services has reported a total of 124 cases across the state as of Tuesday. That number does not include nine measles cases reported by New Mexico health officials, which are believed to be connected to the Texas outbreak. The state’s most recently reported case number also does not include some cases that local health officials have determined, such as a case reported in Rockwall County. Of the Texas measles cases, 18 people have been hospitalized, according to state officials. Covenant Children’s had six children with measles admitted to the hospital as of Wednesday morning. The virus is spreading largely through unvaccinated people, who are very likely to catch the measles if they come into contact with it. On the other hand, people who have been vaccinated are unlikely to get sick; the two-dose regimen of the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine is 97% effective at preventing measles. Even for unvaccinated people, measles will not kill most people who catch it.