A second child with measles has died in Texas, state officials said on Sunday, in an outbreak of the childhood disease that has resulted in nearly 500 cases in Texas and has spread across 22 states.
The unvaccinated school-aged child, who had no underlying health conditions, died on Thursday in the hospital from measles pulmonary failure, the Texas Department of State Health Services said.
“The child was receiving treatment for complications of measles while hospitalised,” Aaron Davis, a spokesperson for UMC Health System in Lubbock, Texas, said in an email.
It is the second death of a child in Texas since the measles outbreak began in late January in Gaines County, where the vaccination rate is about 82%, below the 95% considered protective for those who cannot be vaccinated.
When asked about the measles death, US President Donald Trump told reporters on Air Force One that if the outbreak progresses his administration will “have to take action very strongly.”
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr, in a post on X, identified the child as 8-year-old Daisy Hildebrand and said he visited Texas on Sunday to comfort
