Childhood Immunization Rates Continue Downward Slide, Raising Risk of Vaccine-Preventable Disease Outbreaks

Earlier this week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released the childhood vaccination rates, which showed they have continued to decline.¹

According to the latest CDC figures, coverage for the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine among kindergartners now sits at 92.4%, below the 95% threshold generally considered necessary to maintain herd immunity at the community level. The consequences are already visible: the US recorded historic numbers of measles cases in 2025 and 2026. And it is quite possible with the current vaccination rates and exemptions, the pattern will continue for measles cases to increase for 2026-2027.¹

"We've seen historic numbers of measles outbreaks in 2025. We've seen an even greater number of measles cases in 2026—highest numbers we've seen since measles was eliminated in the United States back in 2000," said Robert Hopkins Jr., MD, medical director of the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID). He noted it is "probably inevitable" that the US will lose its measles elimination status when the Pan American Health Organization meets this fall, following a similar loss of status in Canada last year.

The decline is not uniform across the country. States with strong immunization requirements and robust public health programs, including New York, California, and West Virginia, have largely maintained high coverage rates, while others have seen coverage fall for MMR, DTaP, and polio vaccines alike. Non-medical exemptions have also risen nationally, leaving more communities vulnerable.

With CDC estimating roughly 280,000 kindergartners currently lacking documented vaccinations, Hopkins emphasized that reversing the trend will require coordinated local action. "If the schools and the public health units are not collaborating with healthcare professionals in the communities, if they're not collaborating with local media, if they're not collaborating with parents and families...we need community effort, repeated messaging that is consistent, access for kids that are behind," he said.

Hopkins stressed that rebuilding public trust, and ensuring families have access to healthcare professionals who can answer their questions, will be critical to closing the immunization gap before it leads to further disease spread in schools and communities nationwide.

Reference
1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Vaccination coverage and exemptions among kindergartners. SchoolVaxView. CDC. Updated August 17, 2026. Accessed August 18, 2026. https://www.cdc.gov/schoolvaxview/data/index.html