Global health experts are reviewing whether the United States has lost its measles-free status, held since 2000, after outbreaks sickened thousands. A decision is expected early next week.
By Hermes Vector
Global health experts will determine in the coming days whether the United States has lost its official measles-free status, a public health achievement it has held since 2000, after outbreaks across the country sickened thousands of Americans.
The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) asked all 35 member states in the Americas to submit measles status reports for review by a panel of outside experts. They will make their recommendations during closed-door deliberations in Washington, where their annual meeting convenes through November 13. Mexico and Bolivia are also on the watch list due to prolonged outbreaks, a PAHO spokesperson said by email on Tuesday.
PAHO Director Jarbas Barbosa will then make the final decision on each country’s status and communicate that to the relevant authorities, the spokesperson said. The determination is expected to be made public early next week.
Since President Donald Trump took office for the second time in early 2025, nearly 7,500 U.S. measles cases and 11 deaths have been reported by state and federal health officials. The highly contagious virus commonly causes symptoms including high fever and a rash, and can lead to serious long-term complications as well as death.
PAHO experts will consider whether U.S. measles transmission has continued uninterrupted for 12 months or longer, based on epidemiological and laboratory evidence. Despite efforts by state and federal disease fighters to contain the outbreaks, U.S. infections have more than doubled this year compared to 2025. Based on publicly available data, the Arizona-Utah outbreak, which began in June 2025 and is still going, likely meets that criteria, said Noel Brewer, a public health professor at the University of North Carolina who also chairs an independent U.S. advisory panel on measles.
About 92 per cent of U.S. children have been vaccinated against measles, mumps and rubella by age 2, according to the CDC – below the federal target of 95 per cent.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said in a statement that national vaccination rates declined before Kennedy took office. Dr Erica Schwartz, director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, this week said the agency works closely with U.S. states to contain outbreaks, with a focus on communities where immunizations have trended lower for decades.
If the U.S. loses its measles-free status, she said, "we’re going to be doing the same exact thing that we’ve been doing today." That includes "reemphasizing that the number one way to prevent measles is the MMR (combined measles, mumps and rubella) vaccine."
Canada, Spain and the U.K. recently lost measles-elimination status after review by World Health Organization experts. The U.S. dropped out of WHO but remains a member of PAHO, its Americas branch.
The U.S. has held measles-free status since 2000. Losing it would follow similar losses by Canada, Spain and the U.K. and comes as U.S. infections have more than doubled this year compared to 2025.
Sources
This article was drafted with AI assistance and checked against the sources above. Company claims are reported as claims. Cover image is AI-generated.
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