Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a outstanding vaccine skeptic, dismissed considerations a few measles outbreak spreading in west Texas that has reportedly claimed the nation’s first life in a decade, telling reporters: “It’s not unusual” and “we have measles outbreaks every year.”
“There are two people who have died, but we are watching it. There are about 20 people hospitalized, mainly for quarantine,” he stated Wednesday when requested in regards to the demise in the course of the first Cupboard assembly of Donald Trump’s new administration.
His feedback instantly adopted well being officers in Lubbock, Texas, saying the demise of an unvaccinated school-age little one. It’s not clear when or the place this second demise cited by Kennedy occurred or whether or not there was a second demise in any respect.
A spokesperson for his workplace informed HuffPost in an e-mail that the Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention “is aware of the death of one child in Texas from measles.” They didn’t touch upon or clarify the second demise cited by Kennedy.
The demise introduced Wednesday is the primary attributed to measles within the U.S. since 2015, the CDC, which didn’t instantly reply to HuffPost’s request for remark, informed The Related Press.
The Texas Division of State Health Companies has reported 124 instances as of Tuesday, making it the most important outbreak the state has seen in practically 30 years, state well being officers have stated. The overwhelming majority of these contaminated in Texas are kids, and all however 5 of the instances are in people who find themselves unvaccinated or with a standing unknown.
9 extra instances even have been confirmed in Lea County, New Mexico, which is alongside Texas’ northwest border.
“Incidentally, there have been four measles outbreaks this year in this country. Last year there were 16. So it’s not unusual. We have measles outbreaks every year,” Kennedy stated when requested in regards to the little one’s demise in the course of the first two months of this yr. The CDC confirms 16 outbreaks in 2024 however reported simply 4 outbreaks in 2023.
Andrew Harnik through Getty Photos
For comparability, there have been 285 confirmed instances throughout the nation throughout all of final yr.
The virus will be particularly harmful for kids, leading to respiratory and neurologic problems and demise.
Roughly 1-3 out of each 1,000 measles instances will end in demise from these problems, whereas 1 in each 1,000 measles instances will end in acute encephalitis, which regularly leads to everlasting mind injury, in response to the CDC.
Kennedy, who doesn’t have a medical background, has a protracted document of anti-vaccine advocacy and different conspiracy theories, which he was repeatedly grilled over throughout his Senate affirmation listening to final month.
In 2023 he falsely stated “there’s no vaccine that is safe and effective,” and in 2021 he urged folks to “resist” CDC tips on when youngsters ought to get vaccinated. He’s additionally falsely claimed that vaccines trigger autism.
He reversed a few of these feedback throughout his listening to, telling lawmakers that he helps vaccines and wouldn’t discourage folks from getting vaccinated as well being secretary.
The present measles outbreak comes amid a yearslong decline in vaccination charges for kids within the U.S.
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The vaccination fee was close to 95% for 10 years earlier than dropping to about 93% beginning in 2020 in the course of the COVID-19 pandemic. So-called herd immunity will be reached when greater than 95% of a group’s inhabitants has been vaccinated, in response to the CDC.
This rise in instances, and drop in vaccinations, follows measles being declared formally eradicated from the U.S. in 2000 because of the nation’s then-high vaccination fee. That standing meant that the one new instances that occurred had been from individuals who contracted the virus from one other nation and returned with it.
“Before the measles vaccine was introduced, an estimated 48,000 people were hospitalized and 400–500 people died in the United States each year,” in accordance to the CDC.
