By Andrew Stanton
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A Texas doctor warned people not to attend "measles parties" after the virus infected more than 100 West Texas residents over the past few weeks.
Newsweek reached out to the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) for comment via email.
Why It Matters
Measles is a highly contagious and at times deadly disease thought to have been eliminated in the U.S. by the year 2000, about 30 years after the first MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) vaccine was approved.
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But a rise in vaccine skepticism associated with the COVID-19 pandemic has left a growing number of children vulnerable to the virus across the country. Public health officials say the vaccine is safe and effective at preventing serious illness.
Some parents believe the best bet is to hold "measles parties" at which they expose their young children to the disease so they become immune after contracting the virus. Public health experts, however, say this is unsafe, particularly given the availability of the vaccine.
What to Know
The latest measles outbreak is concentrated in West Texas' Gaines County, home to about 22,000 residents. There have been nearly 150 cases in the state, 98 of them in the county, according to DSHS data.
There has been "one fatality in a school-aged child who lived in the outbreak area" and who was not vaccinated, according to DSHS.
During a press conference hosted by the Lubbock Public Health Department Friday, Dr. Ron Cook, of the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, warned against attending "measles parties."
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"What I want you to hear is it's not good to go have measles parties, because what may happen is we can't predict who is going to do poorly with measles, being hospitalized, potentially get pneumonia or encephalitis, or potentially pass away from this," he said. "It's a foolish thing to go have measles parties."
Cook said the vaccine is the "best thing" people can do is ensure they and their children are protected against measles, he said.
"Millions of doses of this drug have been given. It is absolutely not associated with autism. That's been disproven, and that [theory] should have never been started," he said.
It's unclear whether there have been any measles parties since the outbreak began. Cook said that his warning was in response to "social media talk," and compared it to "playing roulette."
Measles is an airborne virus that can cause "serious health complications," particularly for children who are younger than five years old, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Measles symptoms include a high fever that can exceed 104° F, cough, runny nose, eyes that are red or watery and a rash, according to the CDC. More serious complications can include pneumonia and encephalitis.
The CDC notes that a single dose of the MMR vaccine is about 93 percent effective; two doses of the vaccine is about 97 percent effective at preventing measles. Children are advised to get the first dose between 12 and 15 months of age, and the second dose when the are between four and six years old.
Most public schools require the MMR vaccine, though some states allow religious or medical exemptions.
In total, at least 10 states have reported measles outbreaks.
What People Are Saying
Katherine Wells, Lubbock's director for public health, during the press conference: "This outbreak is going to continue to grow. We have susceptible individuals and multiple measles cases. I don't have the data or forecast to know how large it will grow, but I do expect to continue to see additional cases."
Texas DSHS in a statement: "The best way to prevent getting sick is to be immunized with two doses of a vaccine against measles, which is primarily administered as the combination measles-mumps-rubella vaccine. Two doses of the MMR vaccine are highly effective at preventing measles."
What Happens Next
The Texas DSHS is expected to release its next update on Tuesday March 4, 2025.
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