Measles Cases Rise in Several States,Hitting Record High

America’s challenging year with measles is far from over. Several states have reported more cases of the vaccine-preventable viral disease recently, and the country as a whole has reached a new record high.

Health officials in Michigan, California, and Illinois confirmed new cases of measles this week. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2025 has seen the highest number of cases since the disease was locally eliminated from the country a quarter century ago. While the largest outbreaks this year have ended, measles could reestablish itself in the U.S.

New Threats

Officials in Orange County, California, and Cook County, Illinois, reported a single new case of measles each this week.

The California case involved a toddler who had recently traveled domestically, and officials have notified people who could have been exposed to the child at a health care setting. No other community exposure is suspected,as the family was isolated during the most likely period for transmission.

The Illinois case involved an adult who likely caught measles from an infected individual health officials had identified several weeks earlier. It’s the third case reported in the county this year.

The largest new threat comes from Minnesota. The minnesota Department of Health reported 10 new cases this week, bringing the state’s total to 17 this year. Seven of the cases are connected to three earlier cases, while the remaining three are unrelated and tied to international travel, presumably from areas where measles remains endemic.