WACO, Texas (KXXV) — The measles outbreak in rural West Texas has expanded to 90 cases across seven counties, with 16 people hospitalized, according to the state health department on Friday.
According to Devi Shastri at the AP— in neighboring eastern New Mexico, the measles case count is up to nine. However, state public health officials said Thursday there’s still no evidence this outbreak is connected to the one in Texas.
Since the outbreak surfaced three weeks ago, the Texas Health Department has confirmed 90 cases with at least 16 hospitalizations as of Feb. 21. Most infected are under 18.
Local health officials have been trying to persuade the parents of children who are unvaccinated to protect their kids by bringing them to pop-up clinics offering measles vaccinations.
The West Texas cases are concentrated in Gaines County, which has 57 infections, and Terry County, north of Gaines, where there are now 20 confirmed cases.
To the east of Gaines, Dawson County was new to the count with six. Yoakum County has four, and Lubbock, Lynn, and Ector counties have a case each.
Measles is a respiratory virus that can survive in the air for up to two hours. Up to nine out of 10 susceptible people will get the virus if exposed, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
