The United States has reached a 35-year high in measles cases, according to new figures from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The United States has seen 2,318 confirmed cases of measles in 2026, just seven months into the year, down from a high of 2,289 last year, when two unvaccinated children died from the disease.

The rising number of cases has come as vaccine hesitancy in the United States has increased in recent years, leading to lower immunization rates.

In November, a panel will decide whether the United States will lose its measles elimination status, which Canada lost last year.

A country loses elimination status after a year or more of continuous transmission of the same strain of measles virus.

The United States has recorded more measles cases in the last 18 months than the total number during the previous 25 years.

The measles virus, with its characteristic red, spotted rash, used to infect millions of children a year before the vaccine was invented. The extremely contagious virus can be fatal and some patients may experience long-term complications, such as encephalitis and immune amnesia, which resets the immune system, leaving it with a limited ability to respond to new infections.

Last year, an outbreak among the Texas Mennonite community killed two unvaccinated children and one unvaccinated adult in neighboring New Mexico.

Over the past month, Virginia and Pennsylvania have been dealing with new measles outbreaks, while the state of Utah is still responding to a cluster of infections that began last year.

Some 45 states have recorded cases.

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr has come under fire from public health experts who argue that his comments and the restructuring of US vaccine policy have hampered efforts to stop outbreaks.

Kennedy, a vaccine skeptic, has shared mixed messages about the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine, which has been shown to be safe and effective.

The United States recommends two injections for children between one and six years old, which is 97% effective in protecting against the disease.

He has claimed that the MMR vaccine is the “most effective way to prevent the spread of measles” but has also promoted unproven treatments.

Earlier this year, he told lawmakers that several countries had recently lost their measles elimination status and defended the response of U.S. officials.

“The entire world had its worst year for measles,” he said.

Earlier this year, a federal judge blocked the U.S. government from implementing a series of sweeping changes to childhood vaccines under Kennedy’s leadership, including reducing the number of vaccines recommended for children ages 17 to 11.

To achieve herd immunity, which limits the spread of measles and protects the unvaccinated, about 95% of the population must receive vaccines. But vaccination rates have fallen far below in some areas.

Last year, during an outbreak among the Russian and Ukrainian immigrant community in Spartanburg, South Carolina, some schools in the community had vaccination rates as low as 20%.