What happened
The U.S. has reached its highest annual measles cases tally since 1992, with 1,277 confirmed cases across 38 states and the District of Columbia, according to the latest data from the Johns Hopkins University Center for Outbreak Response Innovation. Most of the infections are in Texas, but at least 155 people have been hospitalized nationwide, with three deaths from measles-related complications.
Who said what
"It's only July," said CNN's chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta. "Let that settle in." This surge is "devastating," Claire Hannan, the executive director of the Association of Immunization Managers, told The Washington Post. "We worked so hard to eliminate the threat of measles and to keep it at bay."
Measles was declared eliminated from the U.S. in 2000 but has seen a resurgence amid vaccine hesitancy. Less than 93% of kindergartners received the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine last year, below the 95% rate needed to prevent outbreaks. "People don't remember how sick this virus can make you — or how dead it can make you," Dr. Paul Offit, the director of the vaccine education center at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, told The Guardian.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
What next?
Public health experts warn that the U.S. will lose its measles elimination status if the outbreak continues at the current rate for longer than a year. A Senate committee will vote Wednesday on whether to advance the Trump administration's nominee to lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Susan Monarez, who has said that "vaccines save lives."
-
5 snappily written cartoons about vanishing food stamp benefitsCartoons Artists take on SNAP recipients, Halloween generosity, and more
-
The 5 best political thriller series of the 21st centuryThe Week Recommends Viewers can binge on most anything, including espionage and the formation of parliamentary coalitions
-
Sudan stands on the brink of another national schismThe Explainer With tens of thousands dead and millions displaced, one of Africa’s most severe outbreaks of sectarian violence is poised to take a dramatic turn for the worse
-
How medical imposters are ruining health studiesUnder the Radar Automated bots and ‘lying’ individuals ‘threaten’ patient safety and integrity of research
-
Doctors sound the alarm about insurance company ‘downcoding’The Explainer ‘It’s blatantly disrespectful,’ one doctor said
-
Climate change is getting under our skinUnder the radar Skin conditions are worsening because of warming temperatures
-
Is this the end of ultraprocessed foods?Today's Big Question California law and the MAHA movement are on the same track
-
Bluetoothing: the phenomenon driving HIV spike in FijiUnder the Radar ‘Blood-swapping’ between drug users fuelling growing health crisis on Pacific island
-
Can TrumpRx really lower drug prices?Today’s Big Question Pfizer’s deal with Trump sent drugmaker stocks higher
-
FDA OKs generic abortion pill, riling the rightSpeed Read The drug in question is a generic version of mifepristone, used to carry out two-thirds of US abortions
-
The new Stratus Covid strain – and why it’s on the riseThe Explainer ‘No evidence’ new variant is more dangerous or that vaccines won’t work against it, say UK health experts
