Texas child is first reported US measles death in a decade as outbreak hits more than 130

The school-aged child who was not vaccinated was hospitalized in Lubbock last week and tested positive for measles,

the state health department said in a statement,

Andrea Ammongerman physician

Nobody should die from measles. Vaccines are a safe and effective way to […] avoid unnecessary loss of life,

said the ECDC’s Director, Andrea Ammon

We've got these big gaps in our immunization programs and if we don't fill them really quickly with the vaccine, measles will just jump into that gap,

said the WHO's Natasha Crowcroft, a Senior Technical Adviser on Measles and Rubella, at a press briefing

Measles anywhere is a threat everywhere,

the U.S. Centers for Disease Control say on their website

We have had so many kids coming in and then obviously we were not prepared, probably, so early in what we are seeing to have a death,

said Amy Thompson, CEO of Covenant Children's Hospital in Lubbock, where the child died in what officials said was the fourth week of the measles outbreak

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.health and Human Services Secretary

Incidentally, there have been four measles outbreaks this year in this country,

Kennedy told reporters

This is a big deal,

Dr. Amy Thompson, a pediatrician and chief executive officer of Covenant Health, said Wednesday at a news conference

The state will deploy all necessary resources to ensure the safety and health of Texans,

said spokesman Andrew Mahaleris, calling the child's death a tragedy

When you see it in real life, you really realize how contagious it is,

said Wells, noting she expects more local cases, with a couple under investigation as of Wednesday

We don’t hospitalize patients for quarantine purposes,

said Johnson, the chief medical officer

Unfortunately, like so many viruses, there aren’t any specific treatments for measles,

she said

While multiple measles outbreaks in the United States have not resulted in a death, it was only a matter of time that one would occur,

infectious disease physician Amesh Adalja of Johns Hopkins University told AFP

It's not unusual. You have measles outbreaks every year."

He also downplayed the situation, stating

In Texas, you can just, pretty much say, I object,

Terri Burke of the Texas-based Immunization Partnership, which promotes childhood vaccination, told AFP

Donald Trumppresident

There are two people who have died,

Addressing reporters during a meeting of President Donald Trump's cabinet, Kennedy said ... but provided no further details

CDC is aware of the death of one child in Texas from measles, and our thoughts are with the family. CDC continues to provide technical assistance, laboratory support, and vaccines as needed to the Texas Department of State Health Services and New Mexico Department of Health, which are leading the response to this outbreak,

HHS spokesperson Andrew Nixon said in a statement sent to POLITICO

It's all a personal choice, and you can do whatever you want. It's just that the community doesn't go and get regular healthcare,

Anton told ABC

Peter Hotezdr.

This will accelerate for a while,

said Dr. Peter Hotez, director of the Center for Vaccine Development at Baylor University, in Waco, Texas, and a frequent target of the anti-vaccine campaign

It's a bad illness,

he said, noting

Unfortunately, Texas is the epicenter of it because of our very aggressive anti-vaccine movement,

he said