CDC reports 5,182 measles cases, highest U.S. count in 35 years

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported 5,182 confirmed measles cases in the United States this year, marking a 35-year high in Friday's official tally. By contrast, 2,289 cases were reported throughout 2025, making this year's figure the largest the CDC has tallied since 1991. Cases were reported in 47 jurisdictions, with another 18 cases involving international visitors, and the agency counted 43 outbreaks, with about 96% of confirmed infections linked to outbreaks.

Medical Xpress reported that at least eight measles-related deaths have been recorded by state health officials, some in very young children. Six of those deaths were in Pennsylvania, and The Sunday Guardian reported one each in Wisconsin and New York. The Pennsylvania Department of Health confirmed on Wednesday that an unvaccinated Jefferson County resident tested positive for measles and died, bringing the state's measles-associated death toll to six. Pennsylvania has recorded 1,487 confirmed cases across 45 counties, 287 hospitalizations and six confirmed measles-associated deaths, with fatalities among residents of Jefferson (2), Lancaster (3), and Mifflin (1) counties. The department said it is aware of a reported October death of a Franklin County resident, but as of November 4 its investigation had not found that case meeting the criteria for a measles-associated death.

CDC data show that about 96% of people infected had not been vaccinated or had no vaccination information on record. In Pennsylvania, five of the 1,487 cases, less than 1%, were among vaccinated individuals. The CDC said kindergarten measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccination coverage was 92.4% during the 2025–26 school year. The Pennsylvania DOH said two doses of MMR provide 97% protection and that the state has administered more than 7,000 MMR vaccinations at 244 pop-up clinics since the outbreak began in late April. The department also says nearly 20% of people who contract measles are hospitalized.

Measles was declared eradicated in the United States in 2000, but the disease has resurged as vaccination rates have declined and public distrust of health authorities has grown, according to Medical Xpress. Former FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb cautioned that the actual outbreak may have exceeded reported numbers and that the U.S. could lose its measles elimination status. A Pan American Health Organisation expert commission is set to evaluate whether the U.S. still meets elimination criteria. Pediatric infectious disease specialist Adam Ratner told AFP that measles deaths are "tragic, and they are completely preventable" and said Health Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr. "does not believe that measles is a big problem and does not want to believe that there are deaths from measles".

Update, November 7, 2026

The CDC's national measles death count is four for 2026, lower than the six deaths Pennsylvania health officials report, The News International reported. Pennsylvania has recorded 1,487 cases and six measles-associated deaths; the state counts a death as measles-associated when a person with confirmed measles dies within 30 days after symptoms appear and the death had no unrelated cause. In August, Pennsylvania reported two unvaccinated people died of measles, and the CDC first included those deaths but later removed them after Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. questioned whether measles caused or contributed to the fatalities. The agency said it is collaborating with the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists to create a uniform rule for counting measles deaths. The difference has put Governor Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania and Kennedy at odds over how deaths from measles should be classified. The source also reports that 562 people, about 11% of confirmed cases, have been hospitalized.

Update, November 7, 2026

New York Governor Kathy Hochul declared a state of emergency after the state confirmed its first measles-associated death in 30 years, Bloomberg News reported. The emergency order is intended to free up resources for vaccines and testing, according to the report. Federal health officials have deployed $100 million to states to help with vaccination and contact tracing, and some states have requested on-the-ground CDC assistance; Pennsylvania received one CDC staffer for data analysis and outbreak forecasting.