SEATTLE — A warning has been issued to parents across western Washington after several measles cases popped up in our area.
Local health officials, including Dr. Nicole Saint Clair, Executive Medical Director of Regence BlueShield, are urging people to get the Measles-Mumps-Rubella (MMR) vaccine, but many people are still showing vaccine hesitancy for a vaccine that has been in use for decades.
“Unfortunately, we’re seeing a continuation of what we saw last year in terms of a decreasing trend; we’re seeing kids are more frequently missing their childhood vaccinations,” said Dr. Saint Clair when she recently sat down for one of our interviews for Healthier Together.
The doctor says year over year, from 2024 to 2025, vaccination rates are going down, and that includes the MMR vaccine that protects against measles.
“Right now, across the entire nation, we’re experiencing a significant measles outbreak,” Dr. Saint Clair said.
CBS News recently reported on a vaccine clinic in Texas that was dealing with the fallout over a lack of vaccinations. There have been more than 600 measles cases and counting in Texas, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services, and hundreds more across the US, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).
At least one CDC scientist, Dr. David Sugerman, says the actual case numbers are probably higher.
“In talking with families, they may mention prior cases that have recovered and never received testing, other families that may have cases and never had sought treatment,” he said.
Medical experts say outbreaks happen when we get below a certain percentage of people getting vaccinated. Dr. Saint Clair says herd immunity makes sure the measles has nowhere to go. If vaccine rates slip even a little, and measles gets out and infects people, it can be deadly."
“We forget how significant some of these conditions can be, and we can downplay the severity of contracting one of these illnesses,” Dr. Saint Clair told KIRO 7.
US Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr, often called a vaccine skeptic, recently told CBS News he believes people should get vaccinated.
“My position is that people should get the measles vaccine, but... the government should not be mandating those.”
Measles can be mild, but 1 in 5 kids could be hospitalized, and among those, some will likely die, according to the CDC.
Dr. Saint Clair says messaging and education can help, but vaccine misinformation is rampant since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Some doctors say decades of MMR vaccinations without problems proves that the vaccine is safe and effective. Measles was essentially eradicated, which is why health officials are urging people to roll up their sleeves.
Dr. Saint Clair concurs on people getting the shot.
“All of our old traditional vaccines that have been around for decades that we have lots and lots of experience with, they’re really tried and true.”
©2025 Cox Media Group
