The Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) announced the end of the West Texas measles outbreak on Monday morning, after 42 days with no new connected cases in the state.
Since the outbreak was first identified in late January, there have been 762 confirmed cases, two-thirds of which were in children, 99 hospitalizations, and two fatalities of Texas children, according to DSHS.
The latest data also shows that 44 of the total cases were in those with one or more doses of the measles vaccine, while the remaining 718 had no documented doses.
The first reported measles case with the outbreak was found in a Gaines County resident, who was receiving care at a Lubbock health facility. Lubbock Public Health has been a key part of measles response in the region and the state.
Dr. Katherine Wells is the director of Lubbock Public Health (LPH), serving not only those in the City of Lubbock and Lubbock County, but also many surrounding rural communities. Throughout the outbreak, she has spoken regularly with DSHS and coordinated with other public health departments and medical providers like hospitals and clinics.
“I don't think anybody here expected one of the largest measles outbreaks to be in our backyard, but we really came together and responded to it,” Wells said.
She estimated between 2,500 and 3,000 additional measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccines were given in the state of Texas because of the outbreak, compared to an average year.
A priority during the outbreak that Wells said will persist in the aftermath is vaccine access.
“That's both, you know, the product itself, but then also removing barriers for families so that they can easily get their children vaccinated,” Wells explained.
Especially with vulnerable populations in Texas and across the country, Wells said it is important to raise awareness about the importance of the vaccines and that families know where they can get them.
While the outbreak may have ended, the work is not over for Dr. Wells and LPH. She said they will continue analyzing and educating what has been learned in the process, writing up papers and presenting at conferences to share with other public health departments what they have learned about community preparedness and response.
Wells explained that Lubbock will be able to help “improve that vaccine conversation that we're having nationally.”
Wells said she is relieved for the community and for parents of young children and babies who are at a higher risk of contracting measles. She is also looking forward to how this will redistribute work and prioritization for her department.
“Our health department isn't that large. We have around 40 staff right now,” she said. “So anytime there's kind of a public health emergency or an outbreak, it does cause everybody to shift and pivot and focus on what's in front of us. And with that some of the other public health work gets set aside.”
With some reporting delayed, certain clinical services disrupted, and the Community Health Improvement Plan put on hold, Wells said LPH can start getting “back on track.”
According to the Texas Department of State Health Services, health officials will continue monitoring new cases and have encouraged care providers to stay vigilant.
DSHS will no longer be providing weekly updates to its website. You can find the last updates from KTTZ here.