A small county in West Texas has 15 measles cases, mostly in school-aged children. Gaines County, which borders New Mexico, has one of the highest rates of vaccine exemptions in the state.

The Texas Department of State Health Services has issued guidance to schools as the measles outbreak in Gaines County rises to 15 cases, mostly in children.

According to the Texas Administrative Code (TAC) Rule §97.7, schools and childcare settings shall exclude unimmunized children for at least 21 days after the last date the unimmunized child was exposed to a measles case.

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.

The Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) is reporting an outbreak of measles in Gaines County. All cases have been identified among unvaccinated school-aged children who are residents of Gaines County. Symptom onset began within the last two weeks.

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.

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

Fears of an increasing measles outbreak among children are rising in Texas, as most of the population is reportedly unvaccinated.

West Texas faces a measles outbreak, with 10 unvaccinated people infected, mostly children. Health officials expect more cases and emphasize the importance of the MMR vaccine as vaccination rates fall and exemption requests rise in Texas.