Vaccine Skepticism Gains Ground in Texas Amid Measles Outbreak

In the oil towns of West Texas, a measles outbreak is rapidly spreading, marking the most significant surge in the state in three decades. At least 58 individuals have been infected, with 13 requiring hospitalization, and health officials suspect that hundreds of additional cases remain undetected. Gaines County, where the outbreak originated, had the third-highest rate of vaccine exemptions for religious or philosophical reasons in Texas last year. Over the decade leading up to 2023, the percentage of schoolchildren in the county without the recommended immunizations more than doubled, rising from 7% to 18%.

Yet, rather than responding with stricter public health measures, Texas lawmakers convening in Austin are instead debating legislation that would further loosen vaccine regulations. Texans for Vaccine Choice (TFVC), a vocal advocacy group, has been at the forefront of this movement. On February 18th, TFVC activists, sporting shirts emblazoned with the slogan "Come and Make Me," gathered at the Capitol to lobby for what they call "medical freedom." In just the first month of the legislative session, 45 vaccine-related bills have been introduced—37 of them classified as anti-vaccine by the Immunization Partnership, a non-profit organization monitoring the issue. Two proposals are particularly concerning to public health experts: one would make it easier for parents to exempt their children from school vaccine requirements, while another would shift the authority to determine which vaccines are mandated from health officials to politicians.

This legislative push comes at a time when vaccine skepticism is gaining momentum nationwide. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a well-known vaccine skeptic, has assumed the role of U.S. health secretary, a development that would have seemed inconceivable just a few years ago. "If you told me two years ago that this would happen, I’d have thought you were crazy," remarked Chip Roy, a congressman who aligns himself with vaccine-choice activists.

The grassroots movement fueling this shift is powered by individuals like Carrie Bigford, TFVC’s outreach director. Her activism stems from a personal tragedy: her friend Kristin’s infant died suddenly after receiving vaccinations. Although the hospital ruled out vaccines as the cause and no evidence contradicts that conclusion, Kristin was devastated. On the day after what would have been her child's second birthday, she took her own life. Two decades later, Bigford remains deeply committed to what she calls "medical freedom," convinced that vaccines pose significant risks. She even claims—incorrectly—that Botox undergoes more rigorous clinical trials than vaccines.

For herd immunity against the eight primary childhood diseases, approximately 95% of the population must be vaccinated. Yet, last year, the percentage of fully vaccinated five-year-olds entering classrooms nationwide fell below 93%. Texas, with its large population, sits at 94%, but that number could decline if some of the proposed legislation becomes law. Between 2013 and 2023, the percentage of kindergarteners receiving the measles vaccine dropped in 29 states. Because vaccine skepticism tends to be concentrated in specific communities, these localized clusters significantly heighten the risk of outbreaks.

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, TFVC activists operated cautiously, speaking in hushed tones in the halls of the Texas Capitol, according to the group’s leader, Rebecca Hardy. But in 2020, as public discourse around vaccines exploded online, skepticism gained unprecedented traction. By then, Texas mothers advocating against vaccines had forged alliances with wealthy and influential Republican figures. Today, they have lawmakers actively championing their cause.

Historically, Americans have been more accepting of vaccines than Europeans. A decade ago, research from the Vaccine Confidence Project found that France had the highest levels of vaccine distrust. Now, however, the majority of anti-vaccine content circulating online originates in the United States.

Heidi Larson, the founder of the Vaccine Confidence Project, believes that the growing vaccine resistance could have been curtailed a decade ago with a more empathetic approach. "The medical community hardened these mothers’ views because we weren’t listening," she explains. Bigford herself acknowledges that her vaccine anxieties were fueled by trauma. Had more people engaged with her concerns at the time, she believes, she might not be an activist today.

As Texas moves forward in its legislative session, the intersection of personal tragedy, political ideology, and public health policy continues to shape the state’s approach to vaccination—just as a resurging measles outbreak underscores the potential consequences of declining immunization rates