The outbreak in Gaines County, with a population of about 22,000, has grown since two cases were reported in January. All those who contracted measles were unvaccinated, health officials said.

On January 30, officials reported two measles cases in unvaccinated, school-aged children in Gaines County, which sits at the border of New Mexico and is around 90 miles southwest of Lubbock, Texas. Both children were hospitalized in Lubbock and had been discharged.

A measles outbreak is growing in a Texas county with dangerously low vaccination rates. In late January, two school-age children from Gaines County were hospitalized with measles. Since an estimated 1 in 5 people with the disease end up in the hospital, the two cases suggested a larger outbreak.

The Texas Department of State Health Services said on Friday there have been ten confirmed cases of measles in Gaines County. DSHS reported it as an outbreak of measles in the county.

Elsewhere, the Georgia Department of Public Health today reported two more measles cases in unvaccinated Atlanta residents. In a statement, the group said the patients are family members of a case confirmed in January.

Texas sees first measles cases since 2023, with confirmed cases in Harris and Lubbock counties, highlighting the importance of vaccination.

Two of the four cases are in Lubbock, which hasn’t seen a case in more than 20 years. Measles vaccination rates in Texas have fallen over the last four years.

A measles outbreak is growing in a rural area of West Texas where vaccination rates are well below the recommended level.