Dem
47
GOP
53
Robert Kennedy Jr. has been secretary of HHS for less than a week and already there is a major outbreak of measles in Texas. Many people were expecting a measles outbreak on Kennedy's watch, only not so soon. Observers on the scene expect that up to 300 people may have been infected so far, but the epidemic is hardly over.
Measles is easily prevented by simple vaccinations. Does this outbreak have anything to do with vaccinations? In the immortal words of Sarah Palin, "you betcha." The outbreak is in Seminole, TX, a town of about 6,300 in rural West Texas, midway between Lubbock and Odessa. It is a vast, flat region of ranches, cotton farms, and peanut farms. There is a large Mennonite population there. The Mennonites believe in total separation from the outside world. Gaines County, of which Seminole is the county seat, is a popular place for Mennonites to settle because it does not regulate private schools. That includes vaccine mandates.
About 18% of the children in the county are not vaccinated, which is why it is currently the measles capital of the U.S. and a bellwether of what could happen to the whole country if Kennedy convinces Trump to get a pliant Congress to pass a law stating that no state is allowed to require vaccinations for children to go to school. Such a law could include a provision stating that any state having such a requirement would lose all its federal funding.
Measles is no joke. It is extremely contagious and can be fatal. You didn't think it was contagious? This health worker, who is testing a young girl for measles, might beg to differ:
Measles can spread not only in schools, but in other ways. Some people in Gaines County go to Lubbock to shop in big box stores. The virus can spread there easily. It takes two measles shots to provide complete immunity. One is generally given at age 1 and the second one at age 4. Children younger than 1 have no immunity and children between 1 and 5 have some, but it is not perfect. (V)