DOH warns of low WA measles vaccine rate. Here’s who should get the shot
Washington confirmed its fifth measles case of 2025 earlier this week. That’s already as many cases as the state typically sees over the course of an entire year and just shy of last year’s total of six cases.
The uptick in cases comes in the midst of a surge in the virus nationwide. Eight hundred measles cases have been recorded across the U.S. this year, the majority of which are part of a 624-case outbreak in Texas. Another 65 cases have been recorded in New Mexico, just west of the border with Texas.
While it’s easy for Washingtonians to dismiss those cases since they’re in a different part of the country, Washington has similar vaccination rates, according to the Washington State Department of Health, so a local outbreak isn’t that far-fetched.
“I’m worried that some data show that Washington kindergartners have lower rates of MMR coverage than Texas or New Mexico — both of which are struggling with a measles outbreak,” State Health Officer Tao Sheng Kwan-Gett said in a press release.
Measles vaccine
The two-dose measles mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine is widely available, with the first dose recommended for children between the ages of 12 and 15 months and the second dose recommended between the ages of four and six years. The vaccine is considered 97% effective against the measles.
“The MMR vaccine is our best defense against measles, and we need to get more people up to date on vaccination to prevent a similar outbreak in Washington,” Tao Sheng Kwan-Gett said.
DOH officials told McClatchy that vaccination rates have dropped significantly since the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2023, around 75% of children between the ages of 19 months and 35 months had received a dose of the MMR vaccine, according to DOH.
The community immunity threshold — the percentage of a given population that needs to have immunity in order to prevent the disease from significantly spreading — for the measles is between 92% and 94%, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics.
Do you need a measles vaccine?
DOH recommends that children are vaccinated according to the standard schedule, although parents of children between 6 and 11 months old who are planning to travel to an area where the disease is common should check with their doctor about the possibility of getting a dose slightly early, the department recommends.
DOH also recommends that adults who aren’t vaccinated contact a health care provider about getting the vaccine. The vaccine provides immunity for life, so you don’t need a booster if you’ve received both doses.
If you’re unsure if you’ve received the measles vaccine, you can contact your health care provider or check your immunization record at MyIRmobile.com.
If you have laboratory confirmation that you’ve contracted the measles, or were born before 1957, when the disease was still prevalent, then you’re considered immune, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Measles symptoms
According to the CDC, measles can be characterized by a high fever, red eyes, runny nose and cough, which emerge between seven and 14 after infection. Two to three days from the onset of symptoms, it typically causes small, white spots inside the mouth, followed by a rash of flat, red spots a few days later.
The disease can also become severe. Around 20% of unvaccinated measles patients in the U.S. end up in the hospital, according to the CDC, while around 5% of children with the disease get pneumonia. Between 0.1% and 0.3% of children who contract the disease die from it, according to the CDC.
“Besides causing fever and rash, measles can sometimes cause life-threatening pneumonia and brain inflammation,” Tao Sheng Kwan-Gett said.
People who are immunocompromised, pregnant, under the age of 5 or over the age of 20 are at higher risk of complications from the measles, according to the CDC.
This story was originally published April 25, 2025 at 5:00 AM with the headline "DOH warns of low WA measles vaccine rate. Here’s who should get the shot."