Measles Cases in Texas Top 300 as Virus Now Appears in 17 States

On Friday, the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) provided updated numbers of its ongoing outbreak of measles predominately in West Texas, which has expanded to 14 counties, from 11 counties earlier in the week. As of March 21, DSHS confirmed at least 309 cases have been identified in the Texas outbreak, which is 30 new cases since March 18. Since late January, 40 patients have now required hospitalization. One unvaccinated school-aged child with no underlying conditions died on Feb. 26 in Texas.

Almost all of the cases are in unvaccinated individuals or in individuals whose vaccination status is unknown.

Texas also has confirmed cases in Rockwall, Travis, and Harris counties tied to international travel.

Additionally, on Friday, the New Mexico Department of Health (NMDOH) reported the state’s case count for measles has risen by four to 42. While most cases remain in Lea County, the outbreak spread to Eddy County, which has reported two cases. As of March 21, two Lea County residents have required hospitalization. NMDOH recorded the death of one unvaccinated Lea County resident on March 6, the second in the outbreak.

Last week, NMDOH also reported that a Texas traveler visited Guadalupe and Valencia Counties while infectious with measles, creating potential for measles exposure.

“Recent measles cases in Texas and New Mexico are a reminder to stay vigilant,” said Dr. Miranda Durham, NMDOH chief medical officer. “When someone with measles travels, the virus can spread to unprotected communities—particularly during high-travel periods like spring break. Vaccination is our strongest defense: one dose of vaccine is 93% effective, and two doses are 97% effective.”

The spread of measles recently increased in Kansas, where the state’s health department has reported 10 cases so far this year. All the known measles cases are in Grant and Stevens counties, located in the southwest corner of the state near the Oklahoma panhandle. All of the cases are in children and teenagers under the age of 18 years old. Health officials from Kansas reported the new cases of measles about a week after the illness first showed up in the state, marking its first measles case since 2018.

As of March 20, the CDC has confirmed at least 378 measles cases in the United States this year, an increase of nearly 80 in a week. (CDC is aware of probable measles cases still being reported, and the case count is higher.) This year’s cases are well above last year’s total of 285 measles cases.

Measles cases have now been reported this year in 17 states: Alaska, California, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Texas, Vermont, and Washington. Also this year, three outbreaks (defined as three or more related cases) have been reported, with 90% of confirmed cases outbreak-associated.

Last week, the Ohio Department of Health (ODH) also reported the state’s first measles case of 2025. The unvaccinated adult is from Ashtabula County and had contact with someone who had recently traveled internationally. Ohio had 90 cases of measles in 2022, when an outbreak centered in Central Ohio totaled 85 cases. The state had one measles case in 2023 and seven in 2024.