Today, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported there were 5412* cases of
CDC said there were 5394 measles cases were reported by 47 jurisdictions: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York City, New York State, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. A total of 18 measles cases were reported among international visitors to the United States.1
The federal agency reports "there have been 43 new outbreaks** reported in 2026, and 96% of confirmed cases (5216 of 5412) are outbreak-associated (3831 from outbreaks starting in 2026 and 1385 from outbreaks that started in 2025)."1 Outbreak-associated cases rose by 223 from last week's 4993, and no new outbreaks were added to the 2026 tally.1,2
CDC data show 591 people with measles have been hospitalized in 2026, or 11% of all confirmed cases.1 Children younger than 5 years carry the highest hospitalization rate at 17% (160 of 951), followed by adults aged 20 years and older at 15% (332 of 2240). Among people aged 5 to 19 years, 4% (98 of 2183) required hospital care.1
Adults aged 20 years and older now make up 41% of 2026 cases (2240), compared with 40% (2183) among people aged 5 to 19 years and 18% (951) among children younger than 5 years.1 Ninety-six percent of patients were unvaccinated or had unknown vaccination status. Only 2% had received 1 MMR dose, and another 2% had received 2 doses.1
CDC lists 6* measles deaths in 2026, compared with 3 in all of 2025, and says the figure may change as additional reviews are completed.1 State health departments in New York, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin each announced a measles-associated death between November 2 and November 5, as reported in
CDC is also working with the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists (CSTE) to develop a standardized case definition for deaths due to measles.1 The agency says the effort aims to promote consistent classification and reporting of measles deaths across jurisdictions.
For the full year of 2025, CDC reported 2289 confirmed measles cases from 45 jurisdictions and 48 outbreaks.1 The 2026 total of 5412 is now about 2.4 times the 2025 count, with roughly 7 weeks left in the year. By comparison, the US recorded 285 cases and 16 outbreaks in 2024.1
Kindergarten MMR coverage continues to trail the 95% level needed for community immunity. Coverage fell from 95.2% in the 2019-2020 school year to 92.4% in 2025-2026, leaving approximately 280,000 kindergartners at risk, according to CDC.1 Measles was declared eliminated in the US in 2000.1
The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) is deciding this week whether the United States has lost the measles elimination status it has held since 2000. Experts are weighing whether measles transmission in the US has continued uninterrupted for 12 months or longer, based on epidemiological and laboratory evidence.³ The review comes as the CDC reports 5,182 measles cases across 47 states in 2026, the highest annual case count since 1991.⁴ Many epidemiologists expect PAHO to declare measles endemic in the United States.⁵
*It is important to note that the CDC says on its website that the federal agency is aware of probable measles cases being reported by jurisdictions. However, the data on this page only include confirmed cases that jurisdictions notified the CDC about. Therefore, there could be higher numbers in the US overall.
**CDC reports the cumulative number of measles outbreaks (defined as 3 or more related cases) that have occurred this year in the US; states have the most up-to-date information about cases and outbreaks in their jurisdictions.
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