UPDATE: Measles Outbreak in Texas Gets Worse, Nearly 100 Cases Now Reported

The measles outbreak in West Texas is getting worse.

The Texas Department of State Health Services reported on Friday morning that there are at least 90 confirmed cases of measles in the South Plains region.

The vast majority of cases are still coming from Gaines County, but there has been a substantial increase in cases in Terry County as well. The measles outbreak has spread from Gaines County into other nearby counties as well. Below are the number of cases in each county.

• Dawson – 6

• Ector – 1

• Gaines – 57

• Lubbock – 1

• Lynn – 1

• Terry – 20

• Yoakum – 4

So far, about sixteen patients have been hospitalized according to everythinglubbock.com. Most cases have involved people who were not vaccinated or their status is unknown. Five cases include people who were vaccinated.

According to KFF Health News, health officials believe the outbreak will get worse.

“This is the tip of the iceberg,” said Rekha Lakshmanan, chief strategy officer for The Immunization Partnership in Houston, a nonprofit that advocates for vaccine access. “I think this is going to get a lot worse before it gets better.”

An unknown number of parents may not be taking sick children to clinics where they could be tested, said Katherine Wells, the public health director in Lubbock, Texas. “If your kids are responding to fever reducers and you’re keeping hydrated, some people may keep them at home,” she said.

Some health officials are also pointing to the large Mennonite population in Gaines County as a possible source of the outbreak. According to KFF Health News, the Mennonite populations "often shuns vaccinations".