A recent spike in measles cases has health officials concerned as the new school year rapidly approaching.
Measles are on the rise across the U.S. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, more cases have been reported in the United States so far this year than all of 2025. And that comes just a few years after it had been nearly eradicated in the U.S.
Ben Christensen a senior epidemiologist with the Minnesota Department of Health, and explains why there has been a resurgence in cases in recent years.
"The main reason being that we've seen a decline in the number of people getting the MMR vaccine, the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine," Christensen explains. "We've seen a similar declining trend in our school-age population in Minnesota since the COVID pandemic."
Minnesota’s kindergarten measles vaccination rates have fallen to roughly 86.5%, down from 92% prior to the pandemic, according to data from the University of Minnesota.
Because measles spread through the air, they're very contagious. And it's something to be taken seriously, as cases can also be fatal.
"There's certain populations that are more at risk," Christensen says. "Some of the children under 5, people who are immunocompromised. The estimate is about 1 in 1000."
That's why Christensen encourages parents to get their kids vaccinated before school starts, despite only 17 cases reported in Minnesota so far. But significant breakouts have occurred in other states, and that's something that worries local officials with vaccination levels lower.
"Measles is caused by a virus that can spread from person to person, spreads through the air," he says. "So when you're in a classroom together, for example, you're sharing air with the other people in that classroom. And so measles is one of the more infectious diseases that we have."
Christensen says pediatric clinics across the state have been busy lately administering vaccinations before school starts.
The Minnesota Department of Health says the MMR vaccine is about 93% effective after one does, and 97% effective after two doses.
The nation had 2,289 cases in 2025, the worst year for measles in more than three decades. Now, 2026 has easily become the U.S.’s worst year for measles since 1991, as major outbreaks in South Carolina, Utah and Arizona have sickened hundreds and smaller clusters of cases sparked in other states.
In November, international health officials will meet to determine if the U.S. and Mexico have lost their measles-free status. The U.S. eliminated local measles spread in 2000 by maintaining high vaccination rates, which have fallen in recent years to below the 95% coverage needed to prevent outbreaks.
Vaccination is about protecting others, physician says
Dr. Mark Roberts, retired director of the Public Health Dynamics Lab at the University of Pittsburgh School of Public Health, worries most for the people he calls “innocent bystanders.”
Research and measles modeling by his team shows those who cannot get vaccinated — young babies, people with weak immune systems and those who rarely don’t get robust immunity from the vaccine — bear the brunt of outbreaks early on.
Some people see skipping vaccination as like deciding not to wear a seat belt in a car, Roberts said.
“Not vaccinating your kid is like saying, ‘I don’t want my car to have brakes,’” he said. “Because it’s other people that you can hit. It’s not just you in your car. It’s other people.”
