Measles Outbreak in Utah Continues to Rise

SALT LAKE CITY — Health officials in Utah report that the ongoing measles outbreak is still increasing.

In a recent update on Tuesday, the Utah Department of Health and Human Services announced 156 confirmed cases of this highly contagious virus statewide.

This marks a rise of over a dozen infections since the update on December 23. Additionally, the department indicated that 40 residents have been diagnosed with measles in the last three weeks.

The Southwest Utah Health District has the highest number of cases, with 114 confirmed infections, followed by Utah County Health District with 16 cases, and Wasatch County Health District, which has reported 9 cases.

The spike in measles cases in Utah reflects a broader trend across the nation.

Reports from places like the Utah-Arizona border and parts of South Carolina show ongoing outbreaks, contributing to the growing number of cases reported weekly.

As of Tuesday, the Centers for Disease Control reports a total of 2,065 confirmed cases of measles in the United States, which is the highest it has been in decades.

Specifically, the Utah-Arizona border accounts for over 350 reported cases this year.

Among the 2,065 cases, around 11% have led to hospitalizations, with three confirmed fatalities attributed to the illness, according to CDC data.

The last occurrence of over 2,000 measles cases in one year was in 1992, following updated health recommendations advocating for two doses of the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine instead of one.

Measles had been considered eliminated in the U.S. for about 25 years, with no outbreaks lasting more than a year since 2000. However, the emergence of multiple large outbreaks in 2025 has raised concerns about this elimination status if cases continue to increase into late January.

Measles is one of the most contagious diseases known, but the MMR vaccine provides effective protection. The CDC states that one dose of the vaccine is 93% effective against measles, while a second dose increases that to 97%.

However, vaccination rates have been declining for several years, particularly among young children. For the 2024-25 school year, only 92.5% of incoming kindergarten students have received the MMR vaccine, falling below the 95% threshold necessary to prevent outbreaks, according to health officials.

Of the 156 individuals in Utah who contracted measles in 2025, the DHHS reported that 140 were unvaccinated, while nine were vaccinated, and seven had unknown vaccination statuses.