(CNN) — Recent outbreaks of measles in the United States are driving up case counts and raising alarm among public health experts, especially as vaccination rates among children lag.
The concern this year comes after the first reported deaths in the U.S. since 2015 and following a significant increase in the number of cases in 2024. A large outbreak in West Texas is largely responsible for the spike in the national cases in 2025. However, the United States is now facing its second surge, with cases accumulating nearly as quickly as when the West Texas outbreak was at its peak this spring. Large outbreaks in Utah, Arizona and South Carolina are continuing to grow.
Texas hasn’t reported any new measles cases since state officials declared that the outbreak there was over in mid-August.
Measles is a highly contagious airborne disease. It can cause serious health consequences or death, especially for young and unvaccinated children. Most of the cases involve people younger than age 20.
General symptoms may include fever, cough, runny nose, watery eyes and a rash of red spots. About 1 in 5 unvaccinated people in the U.S. who get measles will be hospitalized, according to the CDC.
About 1 in every 20 children will develop pneumonia, and others may develop a dangerous swelling in the brain called encephalitis. Up to 3 of every 1,000 children who become infected with measles may die from respiratory and neurologic complications.
National data compiled by the CDC lags behind reports collected by state health agencies. Here’s the latest national snapshot of which states have reported cases so far. Cases have been reported in nearly every state.
Measles is preventable, thanks to a highly effective vaccine. Experts recommend that children get the measles, mumps and rubella, or MMR, vaccine in two doses: the first between 12 months and 15 months of age, and a second between 4 and 6 years old. One dose is about 93% effective at preventing measles infection; two doses are about 97% effective.
The increased concern about measles cases can be attributed to falling vaccination rates and to increased travel, which can result in unvaccinated people acquiring measles abroad and bringing it back to the U.S., according to the CDC, which occurred in 2019.
Here’s how the cases this year compare to the past.
Measles was eliminated in the U.S. in 2000. Imported cases are expected, but when vaccination rates are high, the risk remains low and outbreaks are rare. Outbreaks in 2019, particularly two in underimmunized Orthodox Jewish communities in New York, threatened measles elimination status in the US.
“If a measles outbreak continues for a year or more, the United States could lose its measles elimination status,” according to the CDC.
Because measles is so contagious, a high level of vaccination coverage is key to minimizing spread. The U.S. has set a target vaccination rate of 95%, but coverage among kindergarteners has dipped below that in recent years.
MMR vaccine series completion among kindergarteners decreased from 95.2% during the 2019–2020 school year to 92.7% in the 2023–2024 school year, leaving about 280,000 at risk, according to the CDC.
Coverage varies widely by state.
The-CNN-Wire
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