The first death from measles since 2015 was reported in an unvaccinated child in Texas this week. Measles, which can survive in the air for up to two hours, can cause serious illness. Between 2020 and March 2024, there was a total of 338 measles cases in the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Almost 30 percent happened at the start of 2024.
![[A map shows where measles cases have cropped up around the nation. So far, six states have been impacted by the virus]](https://static.independent.co.uk/2025/02/27/17/48/Screenshot-2025-02-27-at-12-24-46-PM.jpeg)
Here’s where cases have cropped up this year:. As of Tuesday, 124 cases of measles have been confirmed in the state since late January. Eighteen people have been hospitalized. The majority of cases have been in younger individuals between the ages of five and 17 years old.
![[A health worker administers a measles test to a car passenger at a mobile testing site outside Seminole Hospital District Friday, February 21, 2025, in Seminole, Texas. Many of the infected in the latest outbreak were unvaccinated]](https://static.independent.co.uk/2025/02/27/18/12/SEI240835639.jpeg)
New Jersey health authorities reported two additional measles cases this week. The cases were linked to a child in Bergen County who had recently traveled abroad. “The two secondary cases of measles that have been identified were individuals with close contact to the original measles case. The individuals have been under quarantine, minimizing any additional potential exposures. At this time, there are no additional cases,” the state’s health department told The Independent in an email on Thursday.
The person arrived on Korean Air flight KAL11/KE11 at the Tom Bradley Terminal on February 19. People in the area from approximately 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. PST may be at risk of developing measles dues to exposure, as well as those assigned to specific seats on the same flight. The passengers will be notified by their local health departments.
All of those infected were family members who were unvaccinated. A case of measles was recorded in January in an unvaccinated adult who had traveled overseas. The individual is a resident of the Southern Kenai Peninsula. They were flying home on Alaska Air flight 228 from Seattle to Anchorage.
