CIDRAP-US measles total for 2026 tops 5,100 cases

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US measles total for 2026 tops 5,100 cases

www.cidrap.umn.edu

US measles total for 2026 tops 5,100 cases​

Sarah Boden

Today at 3:29 p.m.
Measles


With 330 new infections reported this week, confirmed measles cases in the United States have reached 5,182, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

This marks the 13th straight week the nation has seen a triple-digit increase in measles cases reported by the CDC.

Most infections (59%) are among children and teens. Unvaccinated people, or those who don't know their vaccination status, account for 96% of cases. So far, 11% of all patients have been hospitalized.

Two doses of the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine are 97% effective at preventing measles.

In total, only five states have reported no measles cases in 2026: Arkansas, Hawaii, Mississippi, Nevada, and New Hampshire.

US on track to lose measles elimination status​

Pennsylvania, along with Wisconsin, remains one of the country's hot spots. Officials in Pennsylvania confirmed 61 new infections this week, with a total of 1,487 for the year. The state health department also noted another death this week, the sixth reported fatality of a Pennsylvanian due to measles complications this year.

The outbreak in the Keystone State may be slowing, Paul Offit, MD, an infectious disease specialist at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, said during today's webinar on measles hosted by the Pandemic Center at Brown University.

"I don't want to jinx it, but it looks like we may be getting on top of it here in Pennsylvania," Offit said, noting that the state's health department has done a good job getting the MMR vaccine to under-immunized communities.

Nationally, though, the United States does not seem to have a handle on measles. The country is expected to lose its measles elimination status, a distinction it has held since 2000, after a commission of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) meets next week in Washington, DC, for its sixth annual meeting to discuss regional monitoring of measles and rubella elimination.

Sources tell CIDRAP News the meeting's outcome is largely symbolic. Many, including Offit, believe that measles is now endemic in the United States.

"I think we're going to see measles again next year, and the year after that, and the year after that, until we get on top of vaccinating our populace," he said.

Deadliest week for measles-related deaths this year​

Measles-associated deaths of a child in New York and an infant in Wisconsin were reported on November 3 and yesterday, respectively, by the health departments in those states, making this week the deadliest for measles so far this year. Neither state has reported such a fatality since the 1990s.

New York's case count now stands at 210, up 32 cases from the previous week.

Activity in Wisconsin is intensifying, with 477 reported cases today—a 35-year high for the state. The tally includes 85 new cases and exceeds the CDC's, which was updated yesterday to just 419. The CDC also has a lower total for Pennsylvania than that state's health department.

We're going to see measles again next year, and the year after that, and the year after that, until we get on top of vaccinating our populace.

More than 99% of Wisconsin's cases are among unvaccinated individuals, according to data from the state health department. Nearly 85% of the cases are from an outbreak in the southwest corner of the state.

Case counts are also accelerating in neighboring Minnesota, which has reached triple digits with 139 reported cases. This is 59 more than the previous week. The epicenter of Minnesota's measles activity is Todd County—115 cases have been reported in this rural county of 26,060 people, which sits in the center of the state.

Sizeable jump in Indiana cases, less so in Ohio, Kentucky​

Elsewhere in the Midwest, Indiana's 2026 measles case count is now in the triple digits, with 134 infections. Last week, the Indiana Department of Public Health listed 97. LaGrange County, which borders Michigan, leads the state with 31 infections.

Ohio now has 311 cases, up from 296 last week. Most infections have been in the northeast corner of the state, particularly in Geauga, Ashtabula, and Wayne counties.

Kentucky added just three more cases this week, bringing the year's total to 204 measles infections. All but two Kentuckians infected with measles were unvaccinated or had an unknown vaccination status.

Like Wisconsin, Indiana and Ohio report higher case counts than the CDC. The difference for Indiana is particularly stark, with the federal government reporting 29 fewer cases than the state.