Last year, with 2,289 measles cases confirmed, there was speculation the U.S. would lose its status as a country where measles was considered eliminated. It was a decades-high count. But 2026 has left those numbers in the dust, marking a 35-year high with more than two months to go. As of Oct.
The U.S. declared measles eliminated in 2000—but it could soon lose that status, depending on the conclusions of a meeting of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) next month. Measles cases in the United States are rising; there could be twice as many cases in 2026 as in 2025.
National measles cases this year have now exceeded 4,400, all but guaranteeing the country will more than double the number of measles infections confirmed last year, which totaled 2,289. The latest update from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Friday recorded 4,410 total cases…
