Current number measles New data released Wednesday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that cases in the US are at the highest level in over 30 years.
The CDC said 1,288 confirmed cases have been recorded throughout 38 states as of Tuesday. Texas leads the country in over 700 cases.
Last year, the CDC reported only 285 measles cases. There were 1,274 cases in 2019, but this year’s total was the highest since 1992 since 2,126 cases.
“27 outbreaks have been reported in 2025, with 88% of confirmed cases (1,288 of 1,130) being associated with the outbreak,” according to the CDC. “For comparison, 16 outbreaks were reported in 2024, with 69% of cases (198 of 285) associated with the outbreak.”
Midwest State reports its first measles incident since 2011
This year’s measles incident led to three deaths in the United States. And 92% of people who sign up for the virus have not been vaccinated or their vaccination status is unknown.
Of this year’s cases, 13% required hospitalization. People under the age of five are most likely to need additional medical care, the CDC said.
“Measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccines are very safe and effective. If more than 95% of the community are vaccinated (coverage > 95%), most people are protected through community immunity (flock immunity),” he added. “However, vaccination coverage for kindergarteners in the United States has dropped from 95.2% for the 2019-2020 grade to 92.7% for the 2023-2024 grade, putting approximately 280,000 kindergarteners at risk from 2023-2024.”
The states in the suit are Alaska, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Missouri, Monana, Nebraska, Newjay, Newjay, Newjay, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, Wyoming.
Measles cases continue to climb ahead of summer trips
The CDC also stated, “Measles was officially removed from the US in 2000. This means that measles does not spread within the country, and new cases can only be found when someone signs measles overseas and returns to the country.”
Health officials said symptoms of measles begin to appear seven to 14 days after contracting the virus, including high fever, cough and rash.
“Measles can cause serious health complications, especially in children under the age of five,” the CDC said. “The common complications are ear infections and diarrhea. Serious complications include pneumonia and encephalitis.”
“Measles is very contagious,” the CDC warns. “When an infected person coughs or sneezes, it spreads into the air. You can get measles just by being in a room with measles. This can happen even up to two hours after the person leaves.”
