Lubbock added to outbreak zone; officials lower age for MMR amid multi‑county measles spread

Lubbock Public Health announced that the measles outbreak that began in January 2025 has spread across West Texas and into neighboring states, and that the Texas Department of State Health Services on April 7 expanded its designated outbreak zone to include Lubbock County.

The designation means Lubbock County residents should follow revised MMR (measles-mumps-rubella) vaccination recommendations, including offering a first, early MMR dose to infants as young as 6 months, public health officials said.

Dr. Catherine Wells, a Lubbock Public Health official, said the outbreak’s first two confirmed cases were children from Gaines County who were hospitalized in Lubbock and “these marked the first confirmed cases of measles in the South Plains in over 20 years.” She said the outbreak has since spread to “over 23 other counties in Texas” and that there are cases in El Paso and more than 100 additional cases associated with the same outbreak in Oklahoma, New Mexico and Kansas.

Why it matters: health officials said community transmission — including exposures without an identifiable source and a daycare outbreak — has raised risk for infants and other vulnerable people who rely on Lubbock for regional medical care. “When we first started seeing measles cases, public health or the hospitals could always tie that to some type of medical exposure or an exposure within a home,” Wells said. “Since then … we’ve seen outbreaks where people are coming down with measles and we don't know where they got it from.”

Revised guidance and availability: the health department’s updated recommendations published during the conference call for an early MMR dose for children 6 months to 11 months, followed by the routine doses after age 1 and before kindergarten; children 12 months and older who are not vaccinated should receive two MMR doses 28 days apart. Wells said the guidance applies to residents of listed West Texas counties including Cochran, Dallam, Dawson, Gaines, Garza, Lynn, Lamb, Lubbock, Terry and Yoakum, and that vaccines are available at the Lubbock Health Department, pharmacies and pediatric or primary care offices.

Vaccination uptake: Wells said the health department has administered “over 450 additional vaccines than we would normally” through regular clinics since the local response began. She also said local pediatric offices have been busy with phone calls and vaccinations.

Health partners and consultation: Wells said the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention provided infection-control consultations to evaluate clinical airflow and other factors at physician offices and a daycare facility, which helped officials identify who needed to be sent home and how to reduce risk in health-care settings.

Officials did not announce new mandates or ordered closures at the news conference; they urged residents to check vaccination status and to follow the health department’s posted guidance for specific age groups.

Ending: the health department said updated guidance, maps of the outbreak zone and vaccine locations are available on the City of Lubbock website and that residents should contact their provider or the health department to arrange vaccination.