West Texas measles outbreak ends

The Texas Department of State Health Services has declared the state’s measles outbreak over, marking more than 42 days since the last reported case in any affected county in West Texas. 

Since late January, Texas has confirmed 762 measles cases, the majority of which were children, and reported 99 hospitalizations and two deaths of school-age children who were unvaccinated, according to an Aug. 18 news release from Texas DSHS. 

A third outbreak-related death also occurred in neighboring New Mexico, where a resident of Lea County tested positive for measles after death and had not sought medical care. 

Texas accounted for the most measles cases in the U.S. this year. As of early July, the CDC reported 1,267 measles cases linked to 27 separate outbreaks, nearly five times more than cases reported in 2024. 

Hospitals across the country struggled with managing potential exposure events as unvaccinated individuals with measles sought care. In March, hundreds were potentially exposed at UC Davis Medical Center in Sacramento after a child visited the emergency department. Additionally, similar exposure incidents occurred in multiple Michigan facilities, prompting urgent contact tracing and public alerts. 

Texas DSHS urged healthcare providers to continue to remain vigilant with outbreaks, citing the global circulation of the virus and noted that additional cases may still appear in the state this year, the release said.

The post West Texas measles outbreak ends appeared first on Becker’s Hospital Review | Healthcare News & Analysis.