Measles outbreak prompts Mexico to issue travel warning for Texas

The Mexican government this week issued a travel advisory warning its citizens that they face a “moderate risk” of contracting measles if they travel to Texas during the current outbreak.

The warning comes as the number of measles cases in Texas jumped to 158 over the weekend, Texas Health Commissioner Dr. Jennifer Shuford told lawmakers in Austin on Monday, according to NBC DFW. The highly contagious and potentially deadly disease has mostly affected unvaccinated people.

“Due to the number of suspect cases that we have right now, we do expect more confirmed cases to occur in this outbreak,” Shuford said. “We know other outbreaks have happened in the last 10 years across the United States have lasted months. Some as short as two and a half months, but the one in New York lasted around 10 and a half months.”

The outbreak, so far centered around a portion of West Texas south of the Panhandle, has already claimed the life of one person — an unvaccinated school-aged child hospitalized in Lubbock.

The Mexican government is encouraging its citizens to make sure they’re up to date on their vaccines if they travel to Texas.

Republican Gov. Greg Abbott has remained largely quiet about the outbreak, releasing his first statement on Friday, roughly a monty after the first cases were reported. In a tweet, he said his office “remains in regular communication with [the Department of State Health Services] regarding the measles outbreak.”

The Current reached out to Abbott’s office for more details, but a spokesperson only referred back to the content of the tweet.

There haven’t been any confirmed measles cases in Bexar County as of press time. However, local health officials last week warned that “thousands” could have been exposed when a traveler with measles visited spots around the city.

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This article appears in Feb 19-25, 2025.