First person dies of measles in the U.S. since 2003

(Image credit: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

published 2 July 2015

U.S. health officials revealed Thursday that a Washington woman's recent death from measles marks the first time someone has died from the disease in the country since 2003. While measles is known to be a highly contagious disease, health officials say it is extremely rare to die from it. Though officials are not saying whether the deceased woman was vaccinated, they did say she that her immune system was compromised due to medications she was taking.

Over the last year, measles cases have soared to an all-time high of 644 since the U.S. was declared to be measles-free in 2000. In Washington state alone, there have been 11 reported cases of measles this year — six of which were in a single county. The spike in measles outbreaks, coupled with this recent death, have further sparked debate over the necessity of the MMR (measles, mumps rubella) vaccine, which some believe — without concrete scientific evidence — causes autism in children.