According to data released today by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there have been at least 301 confirmed measles cases in the U.S. this year, more than the 285 infections reported for all of 2024 and more than any single year since 2019. Outbreaks continue to spread in Texas and New Mexico, with cases reported in 13 other states as well. In the past few weeks ago, a child and an adult died of measles. These are the first deaths related to the disease in the United States in a decade, and both people were unvaccinated.
To some people, 301 may not sound like a lot of cases, but measles is one of the most contagious infectious diseases. If one person with measles is exposed to 10 people who are unvaccinated, nine will likely get the disease. Measles is not treatable, but the recommended two doses of the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine are about 97% effective at preventing infection.
As an epidemiologist, I am concerned — as many medical professionals are — that confusion is clouding the clarity that is needed at this moment. Rumors are spreading about the safety of the MMR vaccine and the promise of unproven and ineffective treatments, from Vitamin A to cod liver oil. But the evidence leaves no doubt: death from measles is preventable, and the vaccine works.
What is measles?
Measles is a disease caused by a viral infection. The symptoms look a lot like the flu: fever, sore throat, tiredness, cough, runny nose. Some cases include a skin rash. In high-risk populations – like young children and people with compromised immune systems — measles can lead to serious complications like brain inflammation, pneumonia, and even blindness. The most dire cases can result in death.
How do we prevent measles?
In 2000, it was declared that measles was eliminated in the United States. The Food and Drug Administration approved the first live-virus measles vaccine in 1963, which greatly reduced the infections, and cases plummeted further after children began receiving a second dose in 1989. Since then, the CDC, the World Health Organization, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and other organizations have continued to recommend that children receive two doses of the MMR vaccine.
Why are these outbreaks happening?
The key reason for the recent outbreaks is clear: Fewer people are vaccinated. Collectively, a vaccination rate of 95% is required to establish immunity, but the United States has failed to meet that threshold for four consecutive years. Last year, only 92.7% of U.S. kindergartners were vaccinated, compared with 95.2% in the 2019-20 school year.
The child and adult who have died were both unvaccinated, and the communities that have been hardest hit have especially low rates. Gaines County, Texas, where the child died, has an immunization rate of only 82%.
Experts are concerned that misinformation has led to the decrease in vaccination rates. Anti-vaccination attitudes have grown in recent years due to a number of factors, including the spread of false information about vaccine safety and recommendations of unproven remedies by celebrities and politicians.
What is the government doing?
The Trump Administration recently dispatched CDC experts — sometimes called “disease detectives” — to work with Texas public health officials. The Epi-Aid partnership will provide onsite support for a few weeks. However, recent cuts to the CDC workforce have raised concerns that needed containment strategies may be delayed.
Local efforts are also underway in the many of the states that have reported measles cases. In Texas, for instance, health departments are testing specimens, hosting vaccine clinics, and raising public awareness. New Mexico has set up a helpline that helps answer people’s questions about topics like measles symptoms and vaccinations.
What is the administration saying?
U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., who has expressed doubts about vaccine safety for decades, drew criticism recently when he claimed that treating measles patients with cod liver oil was “getting very, very good results” and said good nutrition is “the best defense against most chronic and infectious illnesses.” While Kennedy acknowledged that the MMR vaccine “not only protect individual children from measles, but also contribute to community immunity,” he didn’t strongly recommend vaccination, emphasizing that getting a vaccine is a personal decision.
Here is the bottom line: As a nation, we figured out a long time ago that vaccines can prevent and eradicate measles. In the midst of a serious outbreak, now is not the time to cast doubt in vaccines and promote unproven treatments. To stop preventable deaths, we need to do everything possible to increase the vaccination rate and build confidence in their safety.
