RFK Jr. visits epicenter of Texas measles outbreak after death of second child who was infected

U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. visited the epicenter of Texas' still-growing measles outbreak on Sunday, the same day a funeral was held for a second young child who was not vaccinated and died from a measles-related illness.

Kennedy said in a social media post that he was working to “control the outbreak" and went to Gaines County to comfort the families who have buried two young children. He was seen late Sunday afternoon outside of a Mennonite church where the funeral services were held, but he did not attend a nearby news conference held by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention about the outbreak.

Seminole is the epicenter of the outbreak, which started in late January and continues to swell — with nearly 500 cases in Texas alone, plus cases from the outbreak believed to have spread to New Mexico, Oklahoma, Kansas and Mexico.

The second young child died Thursday from "what the child's doctor described as measles pulmonary failure,” and did not have underlying health conditions, the Texas State Department of State Health Services said Sunday in a news release. Aaron Davis, a spokesperson for UMC Health System in Lubbock, said that the child was “receiving treatment for complications of measles while hospitalized.”

This is the third known measles-related death tied to this outbreak. One was another elementary school-aged child in Texas and the other was an adult in New Mexico; neither were vaccinated.

It's Kennedy's first visit to the area as health secretary, where he said he met with families of both the 6- and 8-year-old children who died. He said he “developed bonds” with the Mennonite community in West Texas in which the virus is mostly spreading.

Kennedy, an anti-vaccine advocate before ascending to the role of nation’s top health secretary earlier this year, has resisted urging widespread vaccinations as the measles outbreak has worsened under his watch. On Sunday, however, he said in a lengthy statement posted on X that it was “the most effective way to prevent the spread of measles."

The measles, mumps and rubella vaccine has been used safely for more than 60 years and is 97% effective against measles after two doses.

Dr. Manisha Patel, CDC incident manager, said in a Sunday news conference that the MMR vaccine is the best way to protect against measles. She also told parents in Gaines County that it was important not to “delay care” for a child who is sick with measles.

“Call your doctor and make sure you’re talking to a health care professional who can guide you on those next steps," Patel said.

Kennedy’s social media post said CDC employees had been “redeployed.” CDC spokesman Jason McDonald clarified late Sunday that the first CDC team arrived in early March and left Gaines County on April 1, while a team led by Patel “was redeployed and arrived today to assess needs" as ordered by Kennedy and requested by Texas' governor.

Asked about the outbreak Sunday by reporters on Air Force One, Trump said, “they’re doing reports on it,” adding that if the outbreak “progresses, we’ll will have to take action very strongly.”

Neither the CDC nor the state health department included the death in their measles reports issued Friday, but the CDC acknowledged it when asked Sunday.

The number of cases in Texas shot up by 81 between March 28 and April 4, and 16 more people were hospitalized. Nationwide, the U.S. has more than double the number of measles cases it saw in all of 2024.

Republican U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy from Louisiana, a liver doctor whose vote helped cinch Kennedy’s confirmation, called Sunday for stronger messaging from health officials in a post on X.

“Everyone should be vaccinated! There is no treatment for measles. No benefit to getting measles,” he wrote. “Top health officials should say so unequivocally b/4 another child dies.”

Cassidy has requested Kennedy to appear before his health committee Thursday, although Kennedy has not publicly confirmed whether he will attend.

A CDC spokesperson noted the efficacy of the measles vaccine Sunday but stopped short of calling on people to get it. Departing from long-standing public health messaging around vaccination, the spokesperson called the decision a “personal one” and encouraged people to talk with their doctor. People “should be informed about the potential risks and benefits associated with vaccines," the spokesperson added.

Misinformation about how to prevent and treat measles is hindering a robust public health response, including claims about vitamin A supplements that have been pushed by Kennedy and holistic medicine supporters despite doctors’ warnings that it should be given under a physician's orders and that too much can be dangerous.

Doctors at Covenant Children's Hospital in Lubbock, where the first measles death occurred, say they've treated fewer than 10 children for liver issues from vitamin A toxicity, which they found when running routine lab tests on children who are not fully vaccinated and have measles. Dr. Lara Johnson, chief medical officer, said the patients reported using vitamin A to treat and prevent the virus.

Dr. Peter Marks, the Food and Drug Administration’s former vaccine chief, said responsibility for the death rests with Kennedy and his staff. Marks was forced out of the FDA after disagreements with Kennedy over vaccine safety.

“This is the epitome of an absolute needless death,” Marks told The Associated Press in an interview Sunday. “These kids should get vaccinated — that’s how you prevent people from dying of measles.”

Marks also said he recently warned U.S. senators that more deaths would occur if the administration didn’t mount a more aggressive response to the outbreak.

Experts and local health officials expect the outbreak to go on for several more months if not a year. In West Texas, the vast majority of cases are in unvaccinated people and children younger than 17.

With several states facing outbreaks of the vaccine-preventable disease — and declining childhood vaccination rates nationwide — some worry that measles may cost the U.S. its status as having eliminated the disease.

Measles is a respiratory virus that can survive in the air for up to two hours. Up to 9 out of 10 people who are susceptible will get the virus if exposed, according to the CDC. The first shot is recommended for children ages 12 to 15 months, and the second for ages 4 to 6 years.

Seitz reported from Washington. Photojournalist Annie Rice in Seminole, Texas, and AP reporter Matthew Perrone in Washington contributed to this report.

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science and Educational Media Group and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., center right, arrives at Reinlander Mennonite Church after a second measles death, Sunday, April 6, 2025, in Seminole, Texas. (AP Photo/Annie Rice)

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., left, arrives at Reinlander Mennonite Church after a second measles death, Sunday, April 6, 2025, in Seminole, Texas. (AP Photo/Annie Rice)

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., right, arrives at Reinlander Mennonite Church after a second measles death, Sunday, April 6, 2025, in Seminole, Texas. (AP Photo/Annie Rice)

CDC Incident Manager Manisha Patel speaks about the federal governments efforts for the state's measles outbreak, Sunday, April 6, 2025, in Seminole, Texas. (AP Photo/Annie Rice)

People attend the funeral of the second measles death in the state, Sunday, April 6, 2025, in Seminole, Texas. (AP Photo/Annie Rice)

CDC Incident Manager Manisha Petal speaks about the federal governments efforts for the measles outbreak in West Texas, Sunday, April 6, 2025, in Seminole, Texas. (AP Photo/Annie Rice)

A funeral is held for the second measles death in the state, Sunday, April 6, 2025, in Seminole, Texas. (AP Photo/Annie Rice)

FILE - A sign is seen outside a clinic with the South Plains Public Health District, Feb. 23, 2025, in Brownfield, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez, file)

FILE - A measles sign is seen at the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Feb. 25, 2025, in Lubbock, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez, file)

AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) — Fred Couples was so unflappable during the first round of the Masters that not even a sound engineer for one of the broadcasts who wandered down the middle of the fairway as the 1992 champion was trying to tee off threw him out of sync.

Couples chipped in for birdie from left of the green at the first. He holed a hybrid from 191 yards for eagle at the 14th. And after finishing with four consecutive pars, the 65-year-old Couples signed for a tidy 1-under 71 on Thursday that made him the second-oldest player to shoot a subpar round at the Masters. Tom Watson was a month older when he shot 71 in 2015.

“I don't want to be a clown,” Couples said, “but I can play golf. I can play around here. If the weather is like this and not hard, I can — as long as I don't do crazy things — I can shoot 73 or 4 or 5. That's not embarrassing myself at all. If I do that, and did that today and come back with 70 or 71 tomorrow, the goal is for me to make the cut.”

Hard to believe that a year ago, Couples wondered whether Masters chairman Fred Ridley would want him to keep playing.

His back was bothering him again, he had just limped through rounds of 80 and 76 to miss the cut and it seemed like a whole lot more than 12 months since Couples had become the oldest player in Masters history to play the weekend.

It took a phone call with Steve Ethun, the chief tournament officer for the Masters, to reassure Couples he was welcome.

He certainly looked like he belonged on Thursday.

Sure, Couples may have been 25 yards behind playing partners Harris English and Taylor Pendrith off the tees. He has a bag full of hybrids rather than conventional irons. But more often than not, Couples had his bright yellow ball tracking toward the hole, or at least staying out of trouble — perhaps the most important factor in making the cut at the Masters.

“Yeah, he was great, just to kind of see how he plays this place,” said Pendrith, who shot 77. “I learned a few things from him for sure just watching him play. He’s played here many, many times. He played awesome today — 1-under par is a fantastic round. He played really steady. Just kind of missed it in the right places and pecked away.”

It was an eventful round, and not just because of the chip-in and the hole-out with the hybrid.

Couples was even-par when he arrived at the par-4 ninth, and Harris had struck his drive down the middle of the fairway. Couples was about to tee off himself when one of the sound engineers in a trailing group wandered Waldo-like into the picture.

Couples waved at him. So did one of the gallery volunteers. After a minute, Couples resorted to cracking jokes.

Once the fella finally moved, Couples cracked his tee shot down the middle. He hit his approach to 7 feet, playing it perfectly off the ridge running through the green, and rolled in the birdie putt as the spectators roared their approval.

It sounded just like an echo from Amen Corner in 1992, when Couples' ball defied gravity at the par-3 12th and refused to roll back into Rae's Creek. He proceeded to hold off Raymond Floyd by two and win the green jacket.

“He’s a legend in the game and a legend here,” Pendrith said. “It’s his 40th time playing the Masters. People love him. They show great respect to him. They’re all cheering for him. It was really cool to play with him in my first and his 40th.”

AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf

Fred Couples waves after making a putt on the second hole during the first round at the Masters golf tournament, Thursday, April 10, 2025, in Augusta, Ga. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

Fred Couples chips to the green on the second hole during the first round at the Masters golf tournament, Thursday, April 10, 2025, in Augusta, Ga. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

Fred Couples reacts on the first hole during the first round at the Masters golf tournament, Thursday, April 10, 2025, in Augusta, Ga. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)

Fred Couples waves after making a putt on the sixth hole during the first round at the Masters golf tournament, Thursday, April 10, 2025, in Augusta, Ga. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Fred Couples walks to the green on the third hole during the first round at the Masters golf tournament, Thursday, April 10, 2025, in Augusta, Ga. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

Fred Couples hits his tee shot on the seventh hole during the first round at the Masters golf tournament, Thursday, April 10, 2025, in Augusta, Ga. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)