The United States has recorded nearly 500 measles cases this year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, most of which have been confirmed in Texas.
The growing outbreak in West Texas has primarily affected children or teens who are unvaccinated or those whose vaccination status is unknown, state health officials report.
It’s become a major concern for parents, like Davery Jaso. Her 3-week-old twins, Ezra and Adriel, were born in West Texas in the middle of the state’s worst measles outbreak in decades. The infants are too young to be vaccinated, which has left Jaso taking a lot of precautions, as Adriel was born with breathing issues.
“I have air purifiers all through my house. I have one in my room. I have one in my son’s room. I have one in here,” Jaso said. “I do have concerns as far as going out in public or doing certain things.”
Typically the first dose of the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine is given to babies 12 to 15 months old. A second dose is given between 4 to 6 years of age.
In a recent article in the Journal of the American Medical Association, former CDC director Dr. Rochelle Walensky supported federal changes to recommend adding an extra dose for kids as early as 6 months old, if they’re living or plan to travel to a measles outbreak area.
“We have generally between two and four patients in the hospital each day with measles,” said Dr. Lara Johnson, the chief medical officer at Covenant Health in Lubbock, which is on the front lines of the Texas outbreak.
She wants parents to know the vaccine is safe for children at 6 months old.
“There really aren’t any significant concerns with that,” she said.
So far in 2025, at a parent’s request, her hospitals have administered 62 early additional doses of the measles vaccines to infants from 6 to 12 months old.
“It is something that I would consider, just for the safety of my kids really,” said Jaso. “It’s my job as a parent to make sure that they’re all taken care of and as far as sickness goes as well, 100% I would.”
The total number of U.S. cases for 2025 has already surpassed the number of measles infections in all of 2024, which was 285, according to the CDC.
There have been five outbreaks, defined as three or more related cases, reported in 2025 and 16 last year.
According to the CDC, of the nearly 500 total U.S. cases, 97% are in individuals who are unvaccinated or have an unknown vaccination status.
Cases have been reported in 20 jurisdictions. They are: Alaska, California, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York City, New York State, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont and Washington.
