In many places around the world, vaccine-preventable diseases are on the rise as vaccine compliance has waned since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Measles was declared eradicated from the United States in 2000 based on two factors: Measles was not spreading within the country, and new cases only appeared when someone who contracted the disease abroad came into the country.
However, in 2024, measles cases have been reported in jurisdictions in the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Defining an outbreak as three or more related cases, there have been measles outbreaks in the U.S. in 2024 to date. By comparison, in 2023, the CDC tracked 58 measles cases and four outbreaks.
Of the measles cases in 2024, required hospitalization, with of children under 5 years old being hospitalized. Of those contracting the virus, had not received any MMR vaccination (protecting against measles, mumps, and rubella), had received one dose, and had received both doses.
MMR vaccination coverage for kindergarteners in the U.S. has dropped below the 95% herd immunity target nationally and is trending below 90% in more than 20 states. During the COVID-19 pandemic, many children did not receive routine MMR immunizations due to deferred or disrupted care. Also, public confidence in the MMR vaccine has yet to recover from the fraudulent paper published in 1998, falsely associating it with increased rates of autism.