HOUSTON, FEB 27 (AFP/APP/DNA):An unvaccinated child in Texas has died from measles, authorities said Wednesday, marking the first US fatality from the highly contagious disease in nearly a decade as Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. downplayed a growing outbreak.
The death comes as immunization rates decline nationwide, with the latest cases concentrated in a Mennonite religious community that has historically shown vaccine hesitancy.
It arrives at a delicate moment for US public health as Kennedy, who has long spread falsehoods about the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine, begins his tenure leading the Department of Health and Human Services.
“The school-aged child who was not vaccinated was hospitalized in Lubbock last week and tested positive for measles,” the state health department said in a statement, with city officials adding the child died “within the last 24 hours.”
This year more than 130 measles cases already have been reported in west Texas and neighboring New Mexico, the vast majority in unvaccinated children.
Around 20 have been hospitalized in Texas, and officials warn the outbreak is likely to grow.
During a meeting of President Donald Trump’s cabinet, Kennedy downplayed the situation, stating, “It’s not unusual. You have measles outbreaks every year.”
He also stated the death toll as two — but neither the Texas nor New Mexico health departments said they knew of any additional fatality.
The confirmed death “should serve as a reminder that there was a reason that the vaccine was developed and that the vaccine is valuable to individuals,” infectious disease physician Amesh Adalja of Johns Hopkins University told AFP.
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