U.S. Measles Cases Hit 33-Year Record High

The number of measles cases in the U.S. has hit a 33-year high with at least 1,277 confirmed cases spread across 38 states and the District of Columbia.

That marks the largest number of cases since 1992, when officials recorded more than 2,100 infections.

Measles cases in the U.S. have reached a 33-year high.

There have been 1,277 confirmed cases across 38 states and the District of Columbia, per data published Friday by Johns Hopkins University. 155 people have been hospitalized and three have died. www.washingtonpost.com/health/2025/… [image or embed] — JM Rieger (@riegerreport.bsky.social) July 7, 2025 at 5:22 AM

From the Washington Post:

About 92 percent of measles cases in 2025 were in people who were either unvaccinated or whose vaccination status was unknown, according to the CDC.

Data from the CDC does not yet reflect the record as it is updated weekly on Wednesdays, while the Johns Hopkins’ site validates data every weekday.

The largest outbreak has been in West Texas, where officials have recorded more than 750 cases since late January and believe the true toll is much higher.

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a longtime anti-vaccine activist who ascended to be the top U.S. health official, has offered mixed messages about measles and the vaccine to prevent it.

Before the measles vaccine became widely available in the 1960s, nearly everyone in the United States contracted measles by the time they were 15. Each year, millions of children were infected, thousands were hospitalized, and hundreds died.

But by 2000, the World Health Organization declared that measles had been eradicated in the United States thanks to the successful vaccination program, which stopped the spread of the disease.

Twenty-five years later, here we are.

Earlier this year, Kennedy (lead photo) downplayed the seriousness of the Texas outbreak – even after the first child died – saying: “We have measles outbreaks every year.” #SoMuchWinning

1. Before the measles vaccine became available in the 60s, millions of children were infected each year, tens of thousands were hospitalized, and hundreds died.

In 2000, the WHO declared that measles had been ERADICATED in the United States Today measles is back [image or embed] — Judd Legum (@juddlegum.bsky.social) July 7, 2025 at 8:22 AM