After 26 years, the US has lost its measles elimination status
Officials say 5,182 cases and six deaths in 2026 show sustained transmission has returned, threatening infants and other unvaccinated people.
- On Friday, an independent commission of experts reporting to the Pan American Health Organization determined the United States no longer qualifies as having eliminated measles, a source close to the process told CNN.
- More than 5,400 measles cases have been reported in the United States this year, the highest since 1991, driven by 43 new outbreaks and unvaccinated communities in 2025 and 2026.
- Scientists with Utah's public health laboratory confirmed a single measles strain circulated for more than a year, accounting for more than 95% of cases in the state, according to an August preprint study.
- Dr. Peter Hotez, co-director of the Center for Vaccine Development at Texas Children's Hospital in Houston, called the loss "incredibly embarrassing," while at least 10 people have died after catching measles.
- Regaining elimination status remains a significant challenge, warned Dr. William Moss, a professor at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, citing diminished public trust in vaccines and rising nonmedical exemptions.
78 Articles
78 Articles
Aftenposten
NettavisenAfter 26 years, the United States has lost its status as a measles-free country because the virus has spread continuously in the country for over a year, writes The Wall Street Journal.
The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) has stripped the US of its status as a country where endemic measles transmission has been eliminated, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing sources
According to the newspaper, more than 5,400 cases of measles were reported in the US in 2026, marking the highest number in several decades. In November alone, five deaths were recorded in Pennsylvania, New York, and Wisconsin as a result of unrelated...
US poised to lose its 'measles elimination status' after more than 25 years • Maine Morning Star
The number of confirmed measles cases across the U.S. this year has soared to 5,412 as of Nov. 12, more than double the 2,289 cases through all of 2025, according to the latest release of data from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The trend is pushing the nation to the brink of losing its official “measles elimination status” in more than 25 years.
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