Barton County Health Department Director Karen Winkelman can look at local history to know that the vaccine for measles is effective.

Cases of measles are reportable to the health department. A handwritten register from the early 1960s lists reportable diseases; sometimes entire pages are filled with the names of individuals who had measles. Long lists were likely from schools, where the highly contagious disease spread easily, she said.

In later years, the number of cases almost disappeared.

“It just shows what the vaccine has done.”

A vaccine became available in 1963. In the decade before that, nearly all children got the measles by the time they were 15 years old, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It is estimated 3 to 4 million people in the United States were infected each year. Back then, it’s estimated 400-500 people died each year, 48,000 were hospitalized, and 1,000 suffered encephalitus (swelling of the brain).

Today, the measles vaccine is combined with vaccines for mumps and rubella and known as the MMR vaccine. One dose of the vaccine is 93% effective, Winkelman said. Two doses, which are recommended, are 97% effective.

Measles was declared eliminated from the United States in 2000.

A resurgence

That’s why recent cases in Texas and other states are concerning, Winkelman said. This week’s data shows 159 cases have been identified. Only 5 of those individuals had a vaccine record. One child has died.

As of the end of February, the CDC has reported measles cases across nine states: Alaska, California, Georgia, Kentucky, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York City, Rhode Island and Texas. About 75% of the 2025 measles cases are concentrated in an ongoing outbreak in Texas. On Feb. 26, the Texas Department of State Health reported the first death resulting from the outbreak: a child who had tested positive for measles and who was not vaccinated against the disease.

The cases are not in Kansas at this time and Winkelman said there is no need to panic. This disease is preventable.

“You can have a lab test done to check for immunity,” she said.

The MMR vaccine is available at the Health Department. “You don’t have to have a doctor’s order,” she said.

Most schools require students to have certain immunizations, including MMR, prior to admission unless the parents opt out. The Kansas Department of Health shows that for the 2023-2024 school year, the rate of MMR vaccination for area public schools was:

• 93.56% at Central Plains

• 96.55% at Hoisington

• 86.36% at Great Bend

• 100% at Ellinwood

The main message on measles

This information was provided by Karen Winkelman, director of the Barton County Health Department. Its source is the Centers for Disease Control.

• Measles is a highly contagious disease with serious possible complications including hospitalization, long-term illness and death. Someone who is infected can spread the disease to other people before noticing any symptoms, especially in the four days before and after rash develops.

• CDC data show that unvaccinated people have a very high likelihood, about 90% risk, that they will contract measles if exposed. Unvaccinated children who have not previously been infected are more likely to get infected and should avoid exposure.

• One in five children who contract measles will be hospitalized. One in 20 will develop pneumonia and one to three children in 1,000 who contract measles will die.

• The measles-mumps-rubella MMR vaccine is highly effective.