Surge in Measles Cases
The United States has reported a total of 2,065 measles cases this year as of Tuesday, marking the highest number since 1992, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
This figure is significantly lower than the peak of 27,808 cases recorded in 1990, which followed new guidelines recommending two doses of the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine.
After dropping to 2,126 cases in 1992, numbers remained below 1,000 until a resurgence in 2019 when there were 1,274 reported cases.
Among the current cases, three individuals have died and 235 have been hospitalized. This includes 105 patients under age five, 53 between ages five and nineteen, and 77 who are twenty years or older.
In total for this year, there were 537 cases among children under five years old, 865 among those aged five to nineteen, and 650 for individuals aged twenty and above. There were also thirteen cases with unknown ages.
The CDC reported that there were twenty-four cases linked to international travelers within the U.S., fifteen cases identified in New York City, and a staggering 2,026 across forty-three states. Notably, no confirmed cases were found in Washington D.C., Delaware, Maine, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New Hampshire, North Carolina or West Virginia.
The states with the highest number of measles cases include Texas with eight hundred three incidents reported; Arizona with one hundred ninety-six; and South Carolina with one hundred eighty-one.
The CDC continues to advocate for Americans to receive two doses of the MMR vaccine. One dose is reported to be ninety-three percent effective at preventing measles while two doses increase effectiveness to ninety-seven percent.
A staggering ninety-three percent of the confirmed measles cases this year involved individuals who were unvaccinated or had an unknown vaccination status. Only three percent had received one dose of the MMR vaccine while four percent had completed both doses.
