The surging measles outbreak—now spanning 18 states as of March 20—may continue for about a year, according to health experts in a CNN report. Weekly totals reached 378 confirmed cases nationwide. By comparison, the 2024 total case count for the entire year was 285. Although 95% of the current cases are in patients who were unvaccinated or had unknown vaccination status, a few were reported in people who say they had at least 1 dose of the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine. There have been 2 deaths and 64 hospitalizations. Separately, CBS has reported that at least 1 infected person presented at an urgent care center in the Washington, D.C., area. Health officials are reminding providers of their obligation to report cases to their local health department.
Counting cases: An outbreak is defined as 3 or more related cases. So far there are 3 measles outbreaks for 2025, and 90% of confirmed cases (341 of 378) are outbreak-associated. During 2024, 16 outbreaks were reported.