US Measles Cases Pass 5,000 This Year With Eight Deaths Reported in Eight States, CDC Says
Measles cases in the United States have surpassed 5,000 this year, according to data updated on Friday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
At least 5,182 cases have been confirmed, with cases reported in 45 states and Washington, D.C. Eighteen of the cases were among international visitors to the US, according to the CDC.
Eight measles-associated deaths have been confirmed so far in 2026: six in Pennsylvania, one in New York and one in Wisconsin.
Three of those deaths were confirmed by state health officials this week. On Wednesday, the New York State Department of Health reported the first known measles-associated death in the state in more than 30 years, a child who lived in upstate New York.
Another death was confirmed on Wednesday in Pennsylvania, among an unvaccinated resident of Jefferson County, in the northwestern part of the state.
On Thursday, Wisconsin health officials said an infant had died with measles, the first death in the state since 1990.
The CDC has confirmed four of the eight deaths so far, but said the number is "subject to change."
About 96% of cases are among people who are unvaccinated or whose vaccination status is unknown, according to the federal health agency. Two percent of cases are among those who received just one dose of the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine, and 2% among those who received the recommended two doses.
A plurality of cases has been recorded among those aged 5 to 19. At least 11% of cases have resulted in hospitalization, including more than one in 10 children under five years old.
The CDC currently recommends two doses of the MMR vaccine, the first at 12 to 15 months of age and the second between four and six years old before school entry. One dose is 93% effective and two doses are 97% effective against measles, the CDC says.
However, CDC data shows vaccination rates have been lagging in recent years. During the 2025-26 school year, 92.4% of kindergartners received the MMR vaccine, lower than the 95.2% seen in the 2019-20 school year, before the COVID-19 pandemic.
