Pennsylvania’s explosive measles outbreak is now the largest the United States has seen since the highly contagious virus was declared eliminated in 2000. With more than 1,000 cases, it is the largest on record since 1991.
Pennsylvania health officials this afternoon reported 1,078 cases of measles for all of 2026. That includes 12 cases in January and March, the remaining 1,066 cases since April, when the current outbreak began. The tally includes 145 cases recorded over the past seven days and 74 identified since the previous update on Monday. Health officials noted that 40 of the 74 cases added today were more than two weeks old and had just been recorded.
Among the cases, there were 207 hospitalizations and five deaths: a newborn, a 6-week-old child, an 18-year-old man, a 20-year-old man and a 40-year-old man. All deaths have occurred during the current outbreak in unvaccinated people; both infants were too young to have been vaccinated.
With vaccination rates declining nationwide, measles outbreaks and cases have returned with a vengeance in recent years. A large outbreak in Texas that stretched from January to August 2025 ended with 762 cases, while an outbreak in South Carolina ended in April with 997 cases, the previous record holder. Pennsylvania far exceeds this figure with its 1,066 outbreak-related cases to date. With 34 new infections reported since Monday, the epidemic does not appear to be stopping any time soon.
Measles emergency
Measles was declared eliminated in the United States in 2000 after decades of vaccination efforts. Elimination is achieved and maintained through vaccination rates that prevent continued transmission of the virus for a period of 12 months. In November, experts from the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), which serves as the regional office of the World Health Organization, will review data to determine whether the United States has lost its measles elimination status. Experts generally expect that the United States has lost its status. Canada lost its elimination status in 2025.
Gn Health
