Anti-Vaccination Idiocy - Texas Edition

Remember last year when Indian had the measles thingy? And before that, when in 2005 they had another measles epidemic?  All because a bunch-a idiots of the Jenny McCarthy vein decided that science was for shit?  Well, guess what - it happened again, in Texas this time.  From Forbes

A measles outbreak in Texas traces to a congregation of a megachurch whose leader, Kenneth Copeland, reportedly has warned followers away from vaccines, advocating for faith healing and pushing the debunked notion that vaccines cause autism. One of Copeland’s churches, Eagle Mountain International Church in North Texas, is the epicenter of the outbreak, which now has hit at least 20 people

Just as Wales is paying the price of the autism-measles vaccine panic begun 15 years ago, so is this Texas community. In the wake of the outbreak, the church’s pastor and Kenneth Copeland’s daughter, Terri Copeland Pearsons, was urging congregants take advantage of a couple of free vaccination clinics the church suddenly has on offer or to self quarantine at home for two weeks if they didn’t want to receive vaccinations.

The chain of infection began with a person who traveled somewhere outside the US where measles remains common. Unaware of being infected with the virus, this person then attended services at the church, reportedly even coming in contact with people in the childcare room, which might explain why a 4-month-old baby has been infected.

The first two patients were identified nine days ago. As of Friday, 15 cases had been diagnosed in Tarrant County, Texas, and another five had been treated in its neighboring county of Denton. All of the cases trace to the Eagle Mountain congregation.  Five more Texas measles cases from this year are not connected to this outbreak. The Texas Department of Health and Human Services issued a health alert related to the Eagle Mountain outbreak on August 16, and the alert remains in effect. Symptoms of infection with the measles virus, which can spread via droplets released during coughing and sneezing, show up from 8 to 12 days after exposure. Symptoms include a characteristic rash, cough, fever, and pain, and there is no treatment. More serious outcomes can range from pneumonia to brain inflammation and death.

Measles is so wildly infectious that neighboring counties aren’t the only geographical areas of concern. Public health workers in neighboring states also are on alert. Health officials in Oklahoma, describing measles as capable of “spreading like wildfire,” are watching the North Texas outbreak closely, given that Tarrant and Denton counties lie just south of the Oklahoma border on a major interstate highway corridor

So yeah, I really have nothing to add to this. Just, well, Texas I guess...