As measles exploded, West Texas officials looked to CDC scientists. No one answered.

As a measles outbreak exploded in Texas in February, local health officials struggled to reach CDC scientists who were grappling with changes under the new Trump administration, according to interviews and emails obtained by KFF Health News. The first three clips above are excerpts of emails from Katherine Wells, the public health director in Lubbock, Texas. The bottom clip is from Scott Milton, at the Texas Department of State Health Services. (Credit: KFF Health News illustration; 500Px Plus; photo of Lubbock; Texas; from Getty Images)

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As measles surged in Texas early this year, the Trump administration’s actions sowed fear and confusion among CDC scientists that kept them from performing the agency’s most critical function — emergency response — when it mattered most, an investigation from KFF Health News shows.