On Apr. 6, 2025, the Texas Department of State Health Services has reported the second measles death of a Texas resident in the ongoing outbreak centered in the state’s South Plains region. The school-aged child who tested positive for measles was hospitalized in Lubbock and passed away on Thursday from what the child’s doctors described as measles pulmonary failure. The child was not vaccinated and had no reported underlying conditions.

As of April 4, 481 cases of measles have been confirmed in the outbreak since late January. Most of the cases involve children. Fifty-six people have been hospitalized over the course of the outbreak.

Measles can be transmitted by direct contact with infectious droplets or by airborne spread when an infected person breathes, coughs, or sneezes. People who are infected will begin to have symptoms within a week or two after being exposed. Early symptoms include high fever, cough, runny nose, and red, watery eyes. A few days later, the telltale rash breaks out as flat, red spots on the face and then spreads down the neck and trunk to the rest of the body. A person is contagious about four days before the rash appears to four days after. People who could have measles should stay home during that period.

During a measles outbreak, about one in five children who get sick will need hospital care and one in 20 will develop pneumonia. It can also cause pregnancy complications, such as premature birth and babies with low birth weight. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, the death rate for measles is estimated to be about 1 in 1,000 cases. 

The best way to prevent getting sick is to be immunized with two doses of a measles-containing vaccine, which is primarily administered as the combination measles-mumps-rubella or MMR vaccine. Two doses of the MMR vaccine prevent more than 97 percent of measles infections. A small number of vaccinated people can occasionally develop measles. In these cases, the symptoms are generally milder, and they are less likely to spread the disease to other people.

Note: Outbreaks of the measles were also reported in New Mexico and Oklahoma. One of the cases was traced to Texas.