HOUSTON - Texas Children’s Hospital has confirmed a little boy, between one and three years old, has tested positive for the measles.
A common symptom of the disease is a rash covering the body, but it can lead to deafness, brain damage, pneumonia, and death in rare cases.
Measles is extremely contagious.
Doctors say nine out of ten people who come in contact with the disease will get infected, if they are not vaccinated. However, most people are vaccinated.
The CDC recommends children get two doses of the MMR vaccine; the first at 12-15 months old and the second between 4-6 years old.
Doctors say one dose is 93% effective in preventing the spread of the disease. It jumps to 97% once the second shot is administered.
Last year, Houston Independent School District reported 93% of its students were vaccinated for measles. Montgomery ISD had a 94% vaccine rate. Fort Bend, Cy-Fair, and Katy ISDs all had 97% or higher vaccine rates last year.
However, more and more people are joining the anti-vaccine movement.
In Texas, 20 times more parents are opting out of vaccines now compared to 15 years ago.
Parents are able to file paperwork with the state to get exemptions from immunizations for reasons of conscience.
The Houston Health Department says state lawmakers proposed a bill last year that would let families know if a child at their school was not vaccinated.
That bill did not pass, so the state only provides information about which school districts have exemptions.
Measles is eradicated in the United States, but the CDC says there are outbreaks in Europe, Africa, Asia, and the Pacific.
The toddler who tested positive in Katy had recently gotten back from traveling abroad.