The Department of Health in Mexico has confirmed six measles cases in a local jail in Las Cruces amid the rapidly increasing virus.
The department reported that a federal inmate being held in the Doña Ana County Detention Center is found to be the latest person who has been tested positive for the highly contagious virus.
The New Mexico Department of Health said others may have also been exposed to measles if they visited the US District Court building in Las Cruces on February 24.
Following the report, state health officials have urged everyone to check their vaccination status and report any measles symptoms from now until March 17 to your doctor.
New Mexico's deputy state epidemiologist Dr. Chad Smelser stated, “The New Mexico Department of Health continues to urge people to get the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccination, Vaccine is the best tool to protect you from measles.”
Measles transmits via air and people who contract the virus are likely to experience symptoms such as runny nose, fever, cough, red eyes and a distinctive blotchy rash.
It is important to note, all of the six confirmed measles cases in New Mexico so far are federal detainees.
As per New Mexico health officials, these cases mark the first confirmed cases of this year, after a statewide outbreak in 2025 that sickened 100 people from mid-February to mid-September.
To manage the situation, State health officials are "coordinating with all the facilities to assure all quarantine, isolation, testing and vaccination protocols are followed to minimize risk of measles spread."
