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By Jordan King
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A doctor has accused Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, of downplaying a measles outbreak in Texas by saying outbreaks are "not unusual" in the United States.
Why It Matters
On Tuesday, an unvaccinated child died from measles in Texas, state officials announced, marking the first fatality from the disease in the U.S. since 2015.
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Kennedy, who was confirmed as health secretary on February 13, previously faced criticism over his comments about vaccines. Last week, he vowed to investigate the childhood vaccine schedule, which includes the measles and polio vaccines. He is now facing additional criticism over his response to the Texas outbreak.
What To Know
West Texas is experiencing its largest measles outbreak in 30 years. Since January, 124 cases have been reported across nine counties, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services.
During a Wednesday meeting of President Donald Trump's Cabinet members, Kennedy said the Health Department was following the outbreak. He added that the situation was "not unusual" as the U.S. had "measles outbreaks every year."
Commenting on Kennedy's remarks, Dr. Neil Stone, an infectious diseases specialist, wrote on X, formerly Twitter: "He downplayed it and didn't even mention vaccines. He's complicit. Shame."
Kennedy also said on Wednesday, "There are about 20 people hospitalized, mainly for quarantine." However, Dr. Lara Johnson at Covenant Children's Hospital in Lubbock, where the child who died was being treated, said, "We don't hospitalize patients for quarantine purposes."
The health secretary appeared to misspeak when he told reporters two people had died from the outbreak. Andrew Nixon, a spokesperson for the Health Department, later confirmed to the Associated Press that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had identified only one death.
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Are Measles Outbreaks Unusual?
Measles was officially declared eliminated from the U.S. in 2000, meaning the disease was not spreading within the country. The only cases were found in people who had contracted measles abroad and brought it into the U.S.
However, outbreaks have since begun again, which health officials attribute to the U.S.'s declining vaccination rates. Most states are below the 95 percent vaccination threshold for kindergartners, the level needed to protect against outbreaks, according to the CDC.
The agency said there had been three outbreaks in 2025, with 95 percent of the cases involving an unvaccinated person or someone with an unknown vaccination status.
Last year, there were 16 outbreaks, with a total of 285 cases—89 percent of which involved an unvaccinated person or someone with an unknown vaccination status.
In 2023, there were 59 measles cases in the U.S., which followed 121 cases in 2022, 49 cases in 2021 and 13 cases in 2020.
In 2019, there were 1,274 cases, the greatest number of cases reported in the United States since 1992.
What People Are Saying
Dr. Amy Thompson, a pediatrician and the chief executive officer of Covenant Health said at a news conference on Wednesday: "This is a big deal. We have known that we have measles in our community, and we are now seeing a very serious consequence."
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. told reporters on Wednesday: "We are following the measles epidemic every day. I think there's 124 people who have contracted measles at this point, mainly in Gaines County, Texas—mainly, we're told, in the Mennonite community. There are two people who have died.
"But we're watching it, and there are about 20 people hospitalized, mainly for quarantine. We're watching it. We put out a post on it yesterday, and we're going to continue to follow it.
"Incidentally, there have been four measles outbreaks this year. In this country last year, that were 16. So it's not unusual. We have measles outbreaks every year."
What Happens Next
The Texas Department of State Health Services said it was working with local health departments in West Texas to investigate cases, provide immunizations where needed and keep the public informed. The CDC has urged the public to make sure their vaccinations are up to date.
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