Measles was considered to be eliminted in the U.S. in 2000, thanks to vaccine developments. But vaccination rates have dropped since the covid pandemic began.

The United States has registered its first death from measles since 2015, after a child who wasn’t vaccinated died in an outbreak in rural West Texas. Normally, most US cases are brought into the country by people who have travelled overseas.

The vaccine-skeptic HHS secretary said outbreaks happen “every year” — but this is the first death since 2015.