A mother infected with measles gave birth this week at University Medical Center Children’s Hospital in Lubbock, exposing new moms, newborns, and their families to the virus.
Because measles can hang in the air or linger on surfaces for up to two hours, staff scrambled to contain the fallout. Emergency masking policies were put in place, and infants as young as three days old were given immunoglobulin injections — an antibody treatment shown to be highly effective in preventing infection after exposure.
“This is the only way we can protect them,” said Chad Curry, training chief for UMC EMS. He stressed the protection is temporary — once old enough, these babies will still need the MMR vaccine.
The incident is a major setback for public health officials. Just days earlier, Lubbock Health Director Katherine Wells thought the outbreak was stabilizing. Now, she admits, “It feels like we’re back to square one.”
As of Friday, the Texas Department of State Health Services reported 259 measles cases, mostly in kids and teens. The outbreak has spread beyond Texas into New Mexico (35 cases) and Oklahoma (2 cases).
At least one child in Gaines County has died, and another death in New Mexico is under investigation. Neither victim had been vaccinated.
Even newborns aren’t safe from this outbreak — and they’re relying on the rest of us to vaccinate so they don’t start life with a shot at measles.
