We would absolutely not take the MMR,” the mother of a six-year-old who died from complications stemming from the measles, told an interviewer.

Texas' outbreak, which has largely spread in undervaccinated Mennonite communities, could last a year, based on studies.

The politics of ending vaccine requirements in Texas is in conflict with the reality of a raging measles outbreak in West Texas. Texans for Vaccine Choice, a powerful political action committee, has been leading the fight to weaken vaccination requirements.

Vaccination efforts have faltered, and many residents have turned to alternative treatments endorsed by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the health secretary.

Three hundred and twenty-one cases have been reported in the ongoing measles outbreak in Texas, New Mexico and Oklahoma, the states said Tuesday. This is an increase of 25 cases since an update on Friday.

A measles outbreak that began in Texas at the start of the year has infected over 300 people as of Tuesday, as cases of the highly contagious illness have been spotted in 17 states and already exceeded the total number of measles cases reported in 2024.

The parents of a six-year-old girl who died of measles in late February told an anti-vaccine activist organization they remain opposed to vaccinations. “We would absolutely not take the MMR,” the mother told representatives from Children’s Health Defense,

Kaylee, the young daughter of the Texan parents, became the first measles death in the US for a decade on February 26. Despite their heartbreak, the couple insisted measles ‘is good for the body’ and suggested parents shouldn’t give their children the vaccine because the disease ‘wasn’t that bad.

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