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A sign warning patients sits outside a mobile clinic offering free measles vaccinations in South Carolina.<\/span>Sean Rayford\/Getty<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n There have been nearly 1,000<\/span> confirmed measles cases in the US in 2026 so far, according to new data<\/a> released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That\u2019s more than four times the amount of cases as this time last year.\u00a0<\/p>\n It\u2019s unclear how much larger the spread could be, as the CDC\u2019s number refers to reported and confirmed cases.\u00a0<\/p>\n Many of the current cases stem from an outbreak in South Carolina<\/a>, with the state nearly reporting around 800 cases since January. Twenty-six states have reported cases this year, spanning the entire country\u2014from California to Maine and from Texas to Wisconsin.\u00a0<\/p>\n During 2025, there were 2,281 confirmed cases of measles. The country is now at risk of, if not on track to<\/a>, losing its measles elimination status that it\u2019s held since 2000. Two doses of the measles, mumps, and rubella, or MMR, vaccine, <\/strong>usually administered in children, provides 97 percent protection, though distrust of vaccinations<\/a>, fueled<\/a> by mis- and disinformation, has risen<\/a> in the past few years.\u00a0<\/p>\n The surging 2026 numbers come after more than a year of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. serving as the head of the US Department of Health and Human Services. He, along with key allies, has led<\/a> the agency toward an unprecedented reshaping<\/a> of the nation\u2019s vaccination system for children<\/a>\u2014a mission he began<\/a> prior to becoming secretary.\u00a0<\/p>\n There are no current death reports from 2026, though at least three people died from measles in 2025. As more Americans are at risk of becoming sick from the illness, Kennedy has continued to spread false information<\/a> about alternative remedies like cod liver oil.\u00a0<\/p>\n Despite the record numbers and quick spread in 2025, HHS told<\/a> Mother Jones <\/em>back in December that they weren\u2019t especially worried about the brewing South Carolina outbreak. The CDC was \u201cnot currently concerned that this will develop into a large, long-running outbreak,\u201d HHS press secretary Emily Hilliard wrote.\u00a0<\/p>\n To date, that outbreak has led to at least 20 hospitalizations. Though, according<\/a> to reporting from ProPublica<\/em>, that number is likely much higher as hospitals in South Carolina aren\u2019t required to report when they admit patients with measles-related illnesses.<\/p>\n Dr. Leigh Bragg, a pediatrician in South Carolina who is board certified in pediatric infectious disease, told ProPublica<\/em> that she didn\u2019t even know that anyone had been hospitalized due to the illness in her state until she saw it on social media.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0\u201cIt\u2019s a very big disservice to the public not reporting complications we are seeing in hospitals or even ERs,\u201d Bragg said. \u201cMeasles isn\u2019t just a cold.\u201d<\/p>\n Even if reports of measles were required, the chaos<\/a> the Trump administration has rained down on the federal workforce could make it hard to understand and address the scope of the issue. <\/p>\n In October, more than 1,000 CDC employees were laid off, only for some 700 to be rehired the next day. As Americans face another widespread public health crisis, the pinned post on Kennedy\u2019s X account isn\u2019t about how to protect yourself or your children from measles. Instead, it\u2019s a video<\/a> of himself working out in a sauna, shirtless, with Kid Rock.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n