Health Matters in 2025: Measles Outbreak and Religion 

Measles Outbreak and Religion

This year 2 kids have died of measles. A 6-year-old and an 8-year-old who were previously healthy. They died of a vaccine preventable illness – the first in many years. The measles outbreak that started in Texas has now spread with outbreaks occurring across the United States. 

The outbreak started in a community in Texas where many have chosen not to vaccinate against measles. The Mennonite religion has been unfairly blamed for these deaths and the outbreak. Most religions including the Mennonite religion do NOT prohibit vaccinations, indeed many religions consider getting vaccinated as a way of loving your neighbor. According to a statement from the Mennonite Church USA which is the largest Mennonite denomination in this country; vaccinations are not against their religion. “As a denomination, MC USA does not request vaccine exemptions for our members on behalf of our religious beliefs” stated Duncan Smith on the organization’s website. The statement issued in March goes on to encourage their members to get vaccinated based on religious principles. 

The Mennonite religion has different subgroups that includes the Old Colony Mennonites, a socio-religious group of people with a very

I believe that most parents that do not vaccinate their children are doing so because that is what they believe is best for their children. I believe they love their children as much as I love my child. 

Gaines County Texas, the epicenter of this measles outbreak has one of the highest rates of parents opting out of getting vaccinations for their children. Nearly 14% of kids there have been exempted from getting at least one school required vaccination. This is not a religious issue. These are not bad parents. The responsibility for the illnesses, hospitalizations and measles deaths falls on those who have spread and benefited from misinformation. This may seem like a bold “political statement” but it is not – just reality. 

In the upcoming segment of this series, I will tackle some of the misinformation surrounding these topics. I will dive into the murky and treacherous waters where “science” and “politics” intertwine. 

Vitamin A and its role in treating measles has become a political issue. For more information see my article on the art and science of medicine. 

Click here for an article on the signs, symptoms and complications of measles and here for protecting yourself and loved ones from measles. 

For more on the measles outbreak from an economic perspective check out this video (and information specific to Nebraska). 

Russ 

Health matters regardless of political affiliation. My intent is to provide information from a medical perspective in the social and political context of 2025. This may at times be in conflict with what is being asserted by politicians, political pundits, conflict entrepreneurs, social media influencers or media personalities. This is unavoidable. It is not my intent to take a lead part in partisan or tribal politics. Just for the record I am registered to vote as a “Nonpartisan” in the state of Nebraska (Disclosures, Disclaimers and Context).