Measles Outbreaks

Measles Outbreaks 2024

The World Health Organization (WHO) reported that measles outbreaks have continued throughout 2024. Over the last five years, measles outbreaks have been reported in 103 countries. There were an estimated 10.3 million measles cases in 2023, a 20% increase from 2022.  

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) confirmed in October 2024 that measles cases were reported in 30 countries. In the most recent 12-month period, EU/EEA Member States reported 18,449 measles cases and 13 related deaths (Romania (12) and Ireland). The ECDC reported that about 87% of these measles patients were unvaccinated.

As of November 15, 2024, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) maintains a global Watch-Level 1, Practice Usual Precautions, Travel Health Notice, identifying measles outbreaks in 56 countries, which include Afghanistan, Angola, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast), the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Liberia, Libya, Malaysia, Mauritania, Nepal, Niger, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, Qatar, Republic of South Sudan, Republic of the Congo, Romania, Russia, Senegal, Somalia, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Syria, Tajikistan, Timor-Leste, Togo, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan, Yemen, and Zambia.

United States Measles Outbreaks 2024

On November 7, 2024, the U.S. CDC reported 277 measles cases in 32 jurisdictions: Arizona, California (San Diego, Los Angeles), Florida (Broward, 10), Georgia, Idaho, Illinois (Chicago (65)), Indiana, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota (67), Kansas City, Missouri, New Jersey (Camden, Monmouth, Somerset counties), New York (New York City (13)), Nevada, North Carolina,   Ohio (Cincinnati), Oregon (31), Pennsylvania (Philadelphia), Tennessee, Virginia, Washington, Washington DC, West Virginia, and Wisconsin. About 56% of cases were hospitalized for management of measles complications, and 39% were under five years of age. As of 2024, there are no CDC recommendations for receiving a third MMR dose during measles outbreaks.

United States Measles Outbreaks 2023

The U.S. CDC reported 59 measles cases by 20 jurisdictions in 2023. The majority of these measles cases were related to unvaccinated international travelers located in California, Colorado, the District of Columbia, Florida, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, New Jersey, New York City, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin.

United States Measles Outbreaks 2022

 According to the CDC, there were 121 measles cases in the U.S. in 2022. During 2000–2022, there was an 18% increase in estimated measles cases and a 43% increase in estimated measles deaths in 2022 compared with 2021. The Health Department of the City of Columbas, Ohio, and Franklin County Public Health (FCPH) reported (85) confirmed measles cases in children, of which (80) were unvaccinated and (36) were hospitalized.

Africa Measles Outbreaks

The WHO AFRO reported in 2023, measles outbreaks were reported in Botswana, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Ethiopia, Kenya, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal, South Africa, South Sudan, Yemen, and Zambia. As of November 2023, Yeman's measles outbreak exceeded 26,000 cases. 

Australia Measles Outbreaks

NSW Health reported a second measles case related to international travel on February 14, 2024. In Sydney, an infectious adult recently returned from southeast Asia. On January 24, 2024, NSW Health advised people that one confirmed measles case in the Australian Capital Territory was infectious while transiting through Sydney. On January 23, 2024, Victoria Health confirmed (Alert number 240124) a new measles case in a returned overseas traveler. NSW Health confirmed a local measles case in September 2022.

Canada Measles Outbreak

The government of Canada is reporting measles cases in 2024. As of March 3, 2024, there are four measles cases (York Region), another four pending (Toronto), and cases in British Columbia. In early February, measles was detected in an unvaccinated child in Montreal. Canada's national vaccine coverage estimates for 2-year-olds in 2022 were similar in 2021 compared to 2019, with about 90% of children vaccine for measles, but 2% of 2-year-old children had not received any vaccine in their lifetime. In 2022, two measles patients were genotype B3.

England Measles Outbreak

In January 2024, the U.K. Health Security Agency (UKHSA) declared a national measles incident in parts of England's West Midlands and London regions. From October 2023 through May 2024, 1,749 laboratory-confirmed measles cases were reported.

Europe Measles Outbreak

The European CDC (ECDC) issued an epidemiological alert for measles outbreaks in 2024, including reports on ongoing outbreaks in Austria, Cyprus, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Portugal, and Romania. In 2023, the WHO European Region reported over 42,200 measles cases in 41 of the 53 Member States.

Eurosurveillance published a Rapid Communication in February 2024, identifying three measles virus genetic mutations in 18 countries, resulting in a loss in polymerase chain reaction test sensitivity. These researchers said measles variants have been detected in 18 countries since 2021. On February 15, 2024, Eurosurveillance reported that Italian researchers described five genotype D8 measles variant detections from areas in and around Milan, Italy. Genotypes B3 and D8 were identified in Canada in 2023. 

India Measles Outbreaks

The U.S. CDC reported in September 2023 that India has said about 24,000 measles cases over the past year. The WHO announced in August 2023 that India had vaccinated over 348 million children between 2017 and March 2023. 

Pan American Health Organization Measles Outbreaks

The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) issued an epidemiological alert on October 31, 2024, due to the recent identification of clusters and cases of measles in the Americas. The PAHO reported over 14,000 measles cases in 2024. In 2023, 14,884 suspected measles cases were reported in the Americas. The PAHO estimated that in 2023, more than 1.7 million children in 28 countries and territories of the Americas, including Canada and Costa Rica, did not receive an initial dose of the measles vaccine by their first birthday.

Philippines Measles Outbreaks

On May 2, 2024, the U.S. Embassy in Manila confirmed a measles health alert. The Philippines Department of Health reported the ongoing measles outbreak reached over 2,500 in 2023. The Philippines reported 589 confirmed measles cases in 2022 and 206 cases in 2021.

Measles Outbreak Costs

The journal Pediatrics published a study in April 2021 that indicates that treatment costs were $47,479 per hospitalized case during a measles outbreak. In January 2020, Clinical Infectious Diseases published a meta-study that calculated the median price per hospitalized measles case as $32,805.

Measles Testing

After MMR vaccination, syndromic panels can detect the measles vaccine virus, which is not transmitted to others and does not cause disease in immunocompetent persons. The U.S. CDC reported in March 2024 that among syndromic test panels conducted by a commercial laboratory, approximately 1% were positive for measles. Patients who received these results were children without known measles risk factors who had been vaccinated against measles; the majority <3 weeks previously. Their results were attributed to the detection of the measles vaccine virus.

Measles Vaccines

In 2023, 83% of children worldwide received their first dose of a measles vaccine. The U.S. CDC published the updated measles vaccination schedule. Various measles vaccines are also listed on this Precision Vaccinations webpage.

Measles Vaccination For Travelers

This CDC web tool empowers international travelers to determine whether or not they need an additional measles vaccination before departure.