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Measles cases rise in US, authorities confirm two deaths
2025-02-26 22:19:14 / BOTA
The death toll from the measles epidemic in Texas and New Mexico in the US has risen to two, US Health Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr. confirmed today.
Texas health authorities earlier announced the first measles death in the US.
It concerns an unvaccinated child who was hospitalized in the city of Lubbock, reports the BBC.
Since the beginning of the year, more than 120 cases of measles have been recorded in Texas and about 10 in the neighboring state of New Mexico, raising fears of a return of this highly contagious disease that was almost eliminated in the US thanks to vaccination in the 1960s.
The outbreak of measles cases comes as vaccination rates in the US have dropped following the Covid-19 pandemic.
The US declared measles "eliminated" in 2000, but in recent years increasing cases have been reported due to lack of vaccination.
The last measles death in the US was recorded in 2015, according to the Infectious Diseases Society of America.
The current outbreak is centered in northwest Texas, with measles also recently found across the state line in New Mexico, as well as Alaska, California, Georgia, New Jersey, New York City and Rhode Island, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).
Currently, nine cases have been reported in New Mexico, four of which are children.
4 million cases, before the vaccine era
Before 1963, when the measles vaccine was deemed perfect, the CDC says about 4 million Americans were infected with measles each year. Up to 500 of them died.
The measles virus is highly contagious and spreads mainly through coughing and sneezing.
In addition to some parents' refusal to vaccinate their children, the CDC says the current outbreak is also related to travelers suspected of bringing the virus from countries with large outbreaks, such as Israel, the Philippines and Ukraine.
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