At noon on June 18, 2026, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention updated its official measles tracker. The numbers represent a milestone that American public health has been dreading for over a year: 2,104 confirmed measles cases in a single calendar year, spread across 41 jurisdictions, with 30 separate active outbreaks still driving transmission.
As the CDC's June 18, 2026 measles data page confirmed, the 2026 case count now includes 2,093 cases in 41 state jurisdictions — Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York City, New York State, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming — plus 11 cases in international visitors to the United States.
Of all 2,104 confirmed cases, 93% — or 1,957 cases — are outbreak-associated: 613 from outbreaks beginning in 2026, and 1,344 from outbreaks that started in 2025 and have continued into this year.
Three Deaths. The First in a Decade — Except Last Year.
The three deaths confirmed since the combined 2025–2026 outbreak began are more significant than a single statistic conveys. They represent the first reported measles deaths in the United States since 2015 — a decade in which the country had achieved what once seemed like an irreversible public health milestone.
According to PMC reporting and CIDRAP's tracking of the 2025 outbreak, the three deaths were: two unvaccinated children in Texas — a six-year-old and an eight-year-old, both in Lubbock — and one unvaccinated adult in Lea County, New Mexico. All three were unvaccinated individuals who did not receive the MMR vaccine, the two-dose regimen that provides approximately 97% protection against measles.
In the United States, measles kills between 1 and 3 of every 1,000 infected children, and the risk of severe outcomes, including pneumonia, encephalitis, hearing loss, and subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (a rare but fatal brain complication that can emerge years after measles infection), is substantially higher in unvaccinated individuals, immunocompromised patients, malnourished children, and very young infants too young to be vaccinated.
| CDC Measles Update — June 18, 2026 | Data |
| Total 2026 confirmed cases | 2,104 |
| Jurisdictions with cases | 41 (plus 11 international visitors) |
| Active outbreaks in 2026 | 30 |
| Outbreak-associated cases | 93% (1,957 of 2,104) |
| Cases from 2026 outbreaks | 613 |
| Cases from 2025 outbreaks continuing into 2026 | 1,344 |
| Unvaccinated or unknown vaccination status | 93% of all case-patients |
| Deaths since 2025–2026 outbreak began | 3 (2 children in TX; 1 adult in NM) |
| All three deaths: vaccination status | Unvaccinated |
| Last measles deaths in U.S. before this outbreak | 2015 |
| 2025 total cases (full year) | 2,255–2,286 (tracking sources vary) |
| Combined 2025–2026 total | 4,318 cases in 48 states/jurisdictions |
| Measles elimination year | 2000 |
| U.S. elimination status risk | On track to lose if 12-month continuous transmission confirmed later in 2026 |
The Two-Year Toll — and What "Elimination Status" Actually Means
The numbers for 2025 and 2026 together define the scale of this crisis. Since January 2025, the combined two-year total is approximately 4,318 confirmed cases in 48 states and jurisdictions. According to CDC data and CNN's measles tracker, approximately 93% of case-patients across both years are unvaccinated or have unknown vaccination status — an almost identical figure across both years. CIDRAP reported in April 2026 that the country was likely to lose measles elimination status in November 2026, "when officials assess the data."
Measles elimination — which the United States achieved in 2000 — is defined by the Pan American Health Organization as the interruption of endemic transmission for 12 months or more across a geographic area. It does not mean zero cases; it means no cases that arise from domestic transmission without an imported source. When outbreaks spread for 12 or more months, as the combined 2025–2026 outbreak has been doing, elimination status is considered lost.
The U.S. has not yet formally been declared to have lost elimination status. The formal evaluation will depend on CDC's assessment of whether domestic chain-of-transmission has been continuous for 12 months. Given the documented scale and duration of the outbreaks — particularly in Texas, South Carolina, Utah, and now 41 jurisdictions — that assessment is widely expected to conclude that elimination status has been lost.
The Vaccination Gap — What 93% Unvaccinated Actually Means for Communities
That 93% of case-patients are unvaccinated or unknown-status is not a statistical artifact. It is a direct measurement of who gets measles and what prevents it. The MMR vaccine — given as a two-dose series at 12–15 months and 4–6 years — provides approximately 97% protection against measles with full vaccination.
A Common Health Coalition analysis cited by U.S. News & World Report found that a 1% decrease in the childhood MMR vaccination rate could cause 17,000 measles cases, 4,000 hospitalizations, and 36 preventable deaths per year. The 2024–25 school year saw the highest kindergarten vaccine exemption rate in four consecutive years of record increases — 3.6% nationally, with some communities significantly higher.
The geographic pattern of the outbreak confirms what vaccination coverage data predicts: the outbreaks are concentrated in communities with below-threshold vaccination rates, including communities where philosophical or religious exemptions have clustered, and communities where disruption to vaccine access or trust in the immunization system has created pockets of vulnerability.
The MMR vaccine remains the only protection against measles. Adults who received only one MMR dose should confirm or receive their second dose with a healthcare provider. Adults born before 1957 are generally considered immune through prior natural infection. Healthcare providers and college students should confirm their two-dose status given the exposure risk in healthcare settings and dense residential environments.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the current measles case count in the U.S.?
As of the CDC's June 18, 2026 noon update: 2,104 confirmed cases in 41 jurisdictions, including 2,093 in state/jurisdictional residents and 11 in international visitors. There are 30 active outbreaks in 2026, with 93% of cases outbreak-associated.
How many people have died from measles in this outbreak?
Three deaths have been confirmed since the combined 2025–2026 outbreak began: two unvaccinated children in Texas (ages 6 and 8) and one unvaccinated adult in New Mexico. All three were unvaccinated. These were the first measles deaths in the United States since 2015.
Is the U.S. about to lose measles elimination status?
Yes, according to public health experts and CIDRAP tracking. Elimination status requires no endemic domestic transmission for 12 consecutive months. Given the scale and duration of the 2025–2026 outbreak, a formal assessment — expected later in 2026 — is widely anticipated to conclude that elimination status has been lost.
Why are so many cases occurring in unvaccinated people?
93% of all measles case-patients across the 2025–2026 outbreak are unvaccinated or have unknown vaccination status. The MMR vaccine provides approximately 97% protection with full two-dose vaccination. The outbreak is concentrated in communities with below-threshold vaccination rates, driven by record high vaccine exemption rates in kindergartners and disruptions to childhood immunization programs.
What should adults do about measles vaccination?
Adults who received only one MMR dose should confirm they received the second dose. Adults born in 1957 or later and who have no documentation of two MMR doses and no laboratory-confirmed measles immunity should receive one or two doses of MMR. Healthcare workers, international travelers, and college students should confirm two-dose status. Adults born before 1957 are generally assumed immune from childhood natural infection.
