A measles outbreak is continuing to spread in Texas and New Mexico as health officials have reported 90 cases of the disease, which can be deadly, in Texas and eight cases in New Mexico.
In a Friday press release, the Texas Department of State Health and Human Services announced that an outbreak of measles had been reported in the South Plains region of the state.
“At this time, 90 cases have been identified since late January,” the press release said. “Sixteen of the patients have been hospitalized. Five of the cases are vaccinated. The rest are unvaccinated, or their vaccination status is unknown.”
The Texas Department of State Health and Human Services warned that additional cases of measles are “likely to occur in the outbreak area and the surrounding communities” as a result of the “highly contagious nature of this disease.” Texas officials also announced that the Department of State Health and Human Services is coordinating with local health departments to investigate the measles outbreak.
A Texas Department of State Health and Human Services previously told ABC News that the current measles outbreak is the worst reported outbreak of the disease in the state in over 30 years.
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Measles cases have also spread into New Mexico in recent weeks. Last Friday, the New Mexico Department of Health confirmed that three cases of measles had been identified in one week in Lea County. Fox News reported that the three confirmed cases brought the state’s total number of cases to eight.
In last week’s press release, the New Mexico Department of Health said that while a connection was suspected between the measles cases in New Mexico and the outbreak in Texas, “it remains unconfirmed.”
Dr. Chad Smelser, the deputy state epidemiologist for the New Mexico Department of Health, said, “We are investigating every suspected case, and we encourage sick individuals with symptoms consistent with measles to seek medical care.”
