Measles reaches endemic level in the United States

Twenty-six years after measles was declared eliminated in the United States, the disease has once again become endemic. With almost 5,200 cases reported this year, an international panel convened yesterday to decide whether the United States should lose its official designation as a country that has eliminated measles. An announcement of the decision is expected on Nov. 17. Approximately 155,000 kindergarten-age children were exempted from receiving their measles vaccines, or about 4.2% of kindergarteners in 2026 — a record high, according to the Centers for Disease Control. The disease has killed unvaccinated children in Texas and Wisconsin and more than 570 people, mostly children, have been hospitalized with the illness.