Feb. 25, 2025
DSHS, CDC Say MMR Vaccine Can Provide Some Protection for Unvaccinated People Even After Exposure
As measles cases continue to spread in and around Gaines County in West Texas, the Department of State Health Services (DSHS) said today one unvaccinated child has died of the highly contagious disease. The number of measles cases has grown to 124 people as of Feb. 25, the vast majority of whom are unvaccinated. It’s the worst outbreak in Texas since 1992. DSHS urges any unvaccinated person who was exposed to measles to get vaccinated quickly.
The health authorities say an unvaccinated person exposed to measles can benefit by receiving one dose of the mumps-measles-rubella (MMR) vaccine within 72 hours of exposure. According to DSHS and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), doing so may provide some protection for previously unvaccinated people exposed to measles. This does not apply to people who are severely immunocompromised or infants less than 6 months old.
“The measles virus is one of the most infectious viruses we know of,” said Ronald Cook, DO, the Lubbock public health authority and a Texas Medical Association physician leader. “Those that do come down with the virus are pretty sick for several days with high fever (it may spike to 104 degrees), cough, runny nose, and conjunctivitis (red, watery eyes).” The telltale measles rash appears three to five days after the first symptoms.
To date, 18 people in West Texas have been hospitalized. Patients with severe cases of measles can get pneumonia or encephalitis (swelling of the brain which can lead to loss of hearing or intellectual disability) or die.
DSHS says the best way to increase defense against getting sick is to be immunized with two doses of the MMR vaccine. DSHS and CDC recommend children receive one dose of the vaccine when they are 12 to 15 months old and another at 4 to 6 years of age. Adults also can be vaccinated to defend against the disease.
Dr. Cook, who also is the chief health officer at the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center School of Medicine, urges unvaccinated people to get the shots.
“It is a very good and safe vaccine and provides lifetime immunity if you complete the two full doses,” he said.
At least 95% of people in an area must be fully vaccinated to achieve sufficient “community immunity” to protect those who are not eligible to get vaccinated, such as children who are less than 6 months old or cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy, which weakens immune systems.
However, in Gaines County where this outbreak began, about 82% of public school kindergarteners have received the MMR vaccine, and about 90% of public school seventh graders received the shots, according to DSHS data.
Less than half of Texas counties have the ideal 95% or higher coverage of the MMR vaccine for kindergarteners.
“There’s a number of individuals that just don’t want to take the vaccine because of all the disinformation that’s on social media, and it’s unfortunate,” said Dr. Cook.
Given the low vaccination rates in the area, Dr. Cook expects the outbreak will likely continue to worsen.
If the outbreak spreads, unvaccinated people need to know that receiving at least one shot of the MMR vaccine can provide some protection for themselves if they are exposed to measles, according to DSHS and CDC. Completing the full vaccine series before being exposed provides the most protection, however.
The measles outbreak comes during the nation’s worst flu season in years. CDC calls this the worst flu season in the country since 2018 – as the flu vaccination rate is at its lowest since 2020. As of Feb. 15, CDC estimates that there have been at least 33 million illnesses, 430,000 hospitalizations, and 19,000 deaths from flu this season.
Talk to your physician about vaccines that can help you and your family stay healthy.
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