Nearly 600 measles cases have been confirmed so far in 2026, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Jan. 30.
All but three of the 588 cases were reported by officials in 17 states, the CDC said in an update. The remaining three were among international visitors.
The agency said there were 416 confirmed measles cases in the country as of Jan. 22.
The new case count is already a quarter of the total from 2025, when there were more measles cases in the country in a year than had been recorded since 1991.
Children make up the bulk of confirmed cases, according to the CDC. Ninety-four percent of people with confirmed infections are listed as unvaccinated or having unknown vaccination status, although it’s unclear how many are in each of those categories.
No deaths have been reported as of yet in 2026, while some 17 people have required hospital care.
Most of the cases so far this year are related to ongoing outbreaks in Arizona, South Carolina, and Utah, CDC officials said.
The case count does not include the 58 new cases reported on Friday by the South Carolina Department of Health.
The outbreak in South Carolina, which began in 2025, is up to 847 cases in total.
In addition to 20 people in isolation because they have measles and are infectious, 443 people are in quarantine because they were exposed to measles, according to South Carolina officials.
Many of the quarantined people are primary school students, they said.
Dr. Linda Bell, South Carolina’s state epidemiologist, said at a press conference this week that there are no signs of the outbreak slowing down.
“It’s just disconcerting to consider what our final trajectory will look like for measles in South Carolina,” she said.
Measles is a contagious disease that spreads primarily through droplets from infected people.
Symptoms—including a cough, runny nose, and red, watery eyes—typically emerge seven to 12 days following exposure.
Many patients also suffer from a rash that starts on the face before spreading to the rest of the body.
Of the 847 cases, 760 have been confirmed among unvaccinated people, the South Carolina Department of Health said. Another 35 had been vaccinated against measles.
The South Carolina Department of Health recommends measles vaccination to prevent measles.
The CDC recommends one dose around a child’s first birthday and a second dose when a child is 4, 5, or 6 years of age.
A spokesperson for the CDC’s parent agency, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, recently told The Epoch Times in an email that most of the cases in South Carolina are occurring in “an under vaccinated immigrant community” in and around Spartanburg in the northern part of the state.
“Vaccination remains the most effective way to prevent measles,” the spokesperson said, adding that “individuals should consult with their health care provider about what is best for them and their family.”
Side effects of the vaccine can include fever and rash.
The spokesperson said federal officials have already provided $1.4 million in financial assistance to South Carolina and are engaged with officials there on responding to the outbreak.
“They are helping connect all the states that are experiencing outbreaks so that we can benefit each other from our best practices,” Bell said.