U.S. measles cases top 5,000 in 2026-Xinhua - 新华网

LOS ANGELES, Nov. 6 (Xinhua) -- The United States had reported 5,182 confirmed measles cases this year as of Thursday, more than doubling the total in 2025, according to the latest data released Friday by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Of the total, 5,164 cases were reported across 47 U.S. jurisdictions, while 18 cases were reported among international visitors to the United States, the CDC said.

A total of 562 patients, or about 11 percent of confirmed cases, have been hospitalized.

About 96 percent of the cases involved people who were unvaccinated or whose vaccination status was unknown, according to the CDC.

The cumulative case count this year has already more than doubled the 2,289 cases reported in 2025. It is the highest annual total in the United States since 1991.

Wisconsin health officials on Thursday reported that an infant had died from measles amid an ongoing outbreak in the southwestern part of the state. It was the first such death reported in Wisconsin since 1990, according to the state's Department of Health Services. The coroner listed measles as the immediate cause of death.

The CDC recommends two doses of the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine as the best protection against measles. However, CDC data show that MMR vaccination coverage among U.S. kindergartners has declined in recent years. ■