Home · Health · Oct 23 archive
Measles Cases in US More Than Double Previous Year's Total
· Confirmed
In Short: The number of measles cases in the United States has more than doubled compared to last year, with Pennsylvania facing its worst outbreak in three decades.
The number of measles cases in the United States has more than doubled compared to last year, reaching 4,588 confirmed cases as of October 2026, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Since the beginning of 2025, there have been 6,877 confirmed measles cases in the United States, a number that will likely lead to the nation losing its measles elimination status later this year, according to the CDC.
An additional 178 measles cases were reported this week, and over the past two weeks, 508 new measles infections have been confirmed, further exacerbating the ongoing outbreak.
Pennsylvania is at the epicenter of the outbreak, with more than 1,300 cases reported across 44 counties as of October 2026, according to the state health department.
The outbreak has resulted in five measles-associated deaths being identified, plus a sixth death reported recently by a local coroner.
The Pennsylvania Department of Health (DOH) said state health center staff have administered more than 6,500 measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccinations at pop-up clinics in the affected communities since the outbreak began in late April.
Ten percent of cases overall have required hospitalization, including 16% of the cases in children under 5.
Of the confirmed cases, 17% have been in children under the age of 5, and 42% have been in kids and adolescents ages 5 to 19.
Most of the confirmed cases (96%) have been in people who are unvaccinated or have unknown vaccination status.
The outbreak is the largest of multiple outbreaks across the US, happening amid an uproar over Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr's controversial vaccine stance.
In Pennsylvania, the outbreak has been particularly severe in Lancaster County, which is known for its traditional Amish roots and open farmland.
The outbreak has also spread to other states, with Kentucky reporting 94 confirmed cases and Wisconsin reporting more than 40 new cases over the last 10 days.
What this adds
The outbreak in Pennsylvania has been particularly severe, with Lancaster County reporting 12 new cases since Monday.
The outbreak has also led to a health alert warning of an increase in measles cases among pregnant individuals and the subsequent rise in congenital measles cases, which have not been seen in decades.
The outbreak has also led to a health alert warning of an increase in measles cases among pregnant individuals and the subsequent rise in congenital measles cases, which have not been seen in decades.
Background
Pennsylvania is facing its worst measles outbreak in three decades, with the state health department reporting 1,260 cases as of Friday.
According to the CDC, the number of confirmed US measles cases has hit 4,588, more than doubling its total from last year.
What's confirmed
- As of October 19, Pennsylvania had reported 1,286 measles cases this year across 42 counties, according to Ars Technica.
- Pennsylvania's Lancaster County is known for its traditional Amish roots and open farmland. ( AFP: René Mattes/Hemis ) The US state of Pennsylvania is grappling with its worst measles outbreak in three decades, with more than 1,300 cases reported since April.
What's still developing
- Uganda, which declared itself Ebola-free in July after recording 20 cases, has denied claims that Nigeria’s first case originated there.
- “We are doing everything possible to contain this case by tracing all the contacts the individual may have had,” he said.
- Dr Jean Kaseya, the director general of the Africa Centers for Disease Control, said on X that “we are facing an extremely serious threat,” with a fatality rate of nearly 50% of cases.
- “There is a gap,” prime ministerial adviser Hyder told Reuters on Sept. 14, as measles cases rose again, blaming vaccine hesitancy by parents or child illnesses for keeping children away.
- The Ebola Bundibugyo outbreak has claimed almost 4,000 deaths and infected 8,224 so far, Mankoula added.
- Doctors found strange nodules growing on their lungs, and several people died as cases mounted over the next few years.
- Just last month he found himself at the mercy of a mutant zombie outbreak in Zach Cregger's Resident Evil and now he's being swallowed by an actual whale.
- Bangladesh’s experience shows the challenge of containing an outbreak when vaccination coverage falls below 95%, a level the WHO says is needed to prevent outbreaks.
- Yet in September, Bangladesh reported a daily average of 1,198 new cases of measles, which causes a high fever, cough and telltale rash.
- Pennsylvania’s measles outbreak shows no sign of slowing A Reuters review of WHO documents, alongside interviews with more than a dozen scientists, health workers and officials, shows that Bangladesh was also hampered in its emergency response by data that left out millions of children, shortcomings in preparation and a failure to reach enough parents.
- SYLHET, Bangladesh — Bangladesh is battling to contain the world’s worst measles outbreak, a crisis exacerbated by weak data, inadequate outreach and vaccination gaps that experts say offers a warning to other countries about the deadly risk of falling immunization rates.
- “They came only after I buried my son,” he said.