A Richmond woman recently learned that she is not immune to the measles virus, despite receiving the vaccine nearly 60 years ago. KPRC 2 reporter Corley Peel spoke with a doctor who indicated that she may not be alone in this situation.
Kathy Kennedy, 66, received her measles vaccine on May 24, 1965. She believed she was protected for life until she discovered that this might not be the case.
“I had heard that some people might not be immune because of the type of dosage that was given at that time,” Kennedy said. “So, I asked my doctor, and they said they could do a blood test.”
Kennedy’s blood test results confirmed her fears: she was not immune to measles, despite having received the vaccine almost six decades ago.
“I kind of thought, you know, there’s a lot of people like me walking around that think they’re immune and they’re not,” she said.
Dr. David Persse, the City of Houston’s Chief Medical Officer, explained that this issue could affect individuals who received the measles vaccine during its initial rollout between 1963 and 1967.
“Back between 1963 and 1967, there were two measles vaccines available on the market. One of them worked okay. The other one turned out to not work very well at all,” Dr. Persse said.
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Currently, most measles cases in the state are reported among children in West Texas, according to Dr. Persse.
“It’s mostly children who are otherwise mostly healthy,” he noted. “So, if you’re a 60 or older person and you’ve got high blood pressure, you’ve got diabetes, and you have emphysema and other chronic medical problems, and you get measles, you’re not a healthy six-year-old, you’re a 66-year-old with all these things. You’re going to run a really high chance of having some serious complications. So, if I were an elder person and I thought that I didn’t have any protection, I would absolutely go ahead and get vaccinated,” said Dr. Persse.
Fortunately for Kennedy, her doctor advised her to receive an updated vaccine, which she did.
“My doctor said I could go ahead and get the vaccine. So, I did that, and now I feel like I’m going to be protected if it continues to spread,” she said.
Dr. Persse recommends that anyone who received the measles vaccine between 1963 and 1967 consider getting a blood test, like Kennedy did, or simply receive the updated vaccine.
While there are currently no measles cases in Houston, Dr. Persse said there is one case in Harris County and one in Fort Bend County, which are primarily travel-related.