With one death now reported in Gaines County and the 124 cases we know about so far, many are asking just how contagious the virus is.

LUBBOCK — A person who was hospitalized with measles has died from measles in West Texas, the first death in an outbreak that began late last month. Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center spokesperson Melissa Whitfield confirmed the death Wednesday. It wasn’t clear the age of the patient, who died overnight.

An unvaccinated school-aged child has died in the measles outbreak in Texas, which has seen 124 reported cases of the disease. It's the first measles death in the U.S. since 2015. Pediatrician and infectious disease specialist Dr.