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• Posted November 19, 2025

New Measles Spread Across States Threatens U.S. Elimination Status

The United States may be on track to lose its measles elimination status for the first time in 25 years as health officials confirm that two major U.S. outbreaks are linked to the same measles strain.

In a recording obtained by The New York Times, health officials said on a call that the strain of measles circulating in Texas since January has now spread to Utah and Arizona.

The outbreak began in a conservative Mennonite community in western Texas before expanding to Oklahoma and New Mexico.

Countries lose measles elimination status when the same strain spreads for 12 months or more. If transmission continues into January (the one-year mark) the U.S. could lose the designation it has held for over two decades.

“I wouldn’t call the code yet, but I think the patient’s not looking real good,” Michael Osterholm, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, told The Times.

Canada lost its 27-year status last week after failing to contain a large outbreak that started at a Mennonite gathering in October 2024.

Losing this status is significant, experts say, even if it does not bring immediate changes.

It shows that a wealthy nation with strong medical resources has allowed ongoing transmission of a disease.

Response teams are still working to track and contain new cases.

"CDC and state and local health agencies continue to work together to assess transmission patterns and ensure an effective public health response — which is what led to the Texas outbreak being declared over," Andrew Nixon a spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) said in a statement.

As of Nov. 13, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) had confirmed 1,723 measles cases nationwide, 87% of which were tied to a record 45 outbreaks this year. By comparison, the United States had 16 outbreaks in 2024.

About 92% of infected people this year were unvaccinated or had an unknown vaccination status.

The strain, identified as 9171, spreading through multiple states, was first detected on Jan. 20 in Gaines County, Texas, and has continued “uninterrupted, across multiple jurisdictions,” Dr. David Sugerman, who leads the CDC’s measles response, said.

The Utah–Arizona outbreak is now the largest in the country, with more than 180 cases. Most infections occurred among members of households, but roughly 25% do not have a source, suggesting unknown sources of transmission.

What's more, about 7% occurred at large events like weddings and festivals.

Local officials in Utah say efforts to raise vaccination rates have had only “limited” success. After an initial surge in rates, they have slowed again.

"It would not surprise me in the least if there’s continued spread across these next several months," Dr. David Kimberlin, a pediatric infectious disease expert at the University of Alabama, who sits on the panel that reviews U.S. measles elimination status, told The Times.

Another outbreak tied to two schools in South Carolina appears close to containment. Rockland County, New York, has also reported four cases, the first since its major 2018 outbreak.

Nationwide this year, the United States has recorded 152 imported cases from at least 47 countries, with eight new importations in the last two weeks alone.

"Overall, the risk of widespread measles transmission in the United States remains low," Sugerman said.

More information

The Mayo Clinic has more on measles.

SOURCE: The New York Times, Nov. 17, 2025