Unvaccinated child is the first to die of measles in a decade in the US

A child who was not vaccinated has become the first person to die of measles in the US in a decade.

The school-aged child died at a Covenant Children’s Hospital in Lubbock on Tuesday night, according to city health officials and the Texas Department of State Health Services. The child’s exact age and identity were not immediately released.

A measles outbreak in rural West Texas began last month and has spread to 124 cases in nine counties. It is the largest outbreak of the disease in almost 30 years.

One of the highest rates is in Gaines County, with 80 cases. The county also has one of the highest rates of grade school children who have opted out of one or more required vaccines – almost 14% last year.

Most of the reported measles cases in West Texas have been in kids.

The first vaccine for measles, mumps and rubella vaccine is recommended for youth aged 12 to 15 months and the second for those four to six years old. Health experts say it is safe and effective in preventing measles, especially severe cases.

US Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr said his department is ‘watching’ measles cases and said the outbreak in the Lone Star State is ‘not unusual’, during a meeting with President Donald Trump’s Cabinet members on Wednesday.

‘We’re following the measles epidemic every day,’ said Kennedy when questioned on the death.

Kennedy, who was confirmed as the country’s top health official despite advocating against vaccines in the past, also seemed to erroneously say two people had died of the disease.

The last US death from measles, which causes red skin rashes, sore throat, inflamed eyes, cough and runny nose and is highly contagious, was in 2015.

Governor Greg Abbott’s office said that vaccination teams have been sent to the ‘affected area’ and that they are working with the state health department to address the outbreak.

Abbott’s spokesman Andrew Mahaleris said the death was tragic and that the state ‘will deploy all necessary resources to ensure the safety and health of Texans’.

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