Wisconsin infant dies of measles, state's first such death since 1990, as national toll reaches eight

An infant in southwestern Wisconsin has died of measles, the state's Department of Health Services announced Thursday — the first measles death in Wisconsin since 1990 and the third reported anywhere in the United States in a single week. The coroner listed measles as the immediate cause of death. State officials said they would not release any further details about the child to protect the family's privacy.

It is with a heavy heart we are reporting the first death of an infant connected with a measles outbreak in Wisconsin in many years. My heart is broken for the family. Any death of a child is a tragedy and even more so when it is related to a vaccine-preventable disease.— Kirsten Johnson, Secretary, Wisconsin Department of Health Services

Wisconsin is in the grip of its largest measles outbreak in more than three decades. As of November 3, the state had recorded 431 confirmed cases across 13 counties, with nine people hospitalized for severe symptoms. Health officials caution the true number is almost certainly higher, because not everyone who falls ill seeks medical care or gets tested.

The outbreak marks a sharp departure from recent patterns. According to the state health department, Wisconsin recorded just 36 measles cases in all of 2025, and in the past most cases were linked to international travel. Now the virus is spreading through domestic travel and direct exposure to family members and others in the community — a sign of how far transmission has taken hold locally.

That's really the central issue here: Measles is now spreading because there are enough people who are susceptible to infection for the virus to continue finding new hosts.— Dr. Ryan Westergaard, Chief Medical Officer and State Epidemiologist for Communicable Diseases, Wisconsin

At the heart of that susceptibility is a vaccination gap. The MMR vaccination rate among Wisconsin kindergarteners sits at roughly 85%, according to CNN — well below the approximately 95% coverage public health officials say is needed to prevent measles from spreading through a population. Two doses of the MMR vaccine are about 97% effective at preventing the disease.

The infant who died was too young to have been vaccinated under the standard schedule, which calls for a first MMR dose at 12 to 15 months. This week, Wisconsin's health department updated its guidance to recommend an early MMR dose for infants between 6 and 11 months who are at increased risk of exposure during the outbreak — a departure from normal protocol driven by the severity of the situation, according to CNN.

The outbreak is concentrated in part among unvaccinated communities. Since August 1, the state health department has delivered 2,000 MMR vaccine doses to local health departments in affected communities, and more than 42,000 doses have been administered by health care providers statewide during that period, according to the Wisconsin DHS.

Wisconsin's death was not an isolated event. Earlier in the week, New York State announced that a child in rural Lewis County had died after contracting measles — the state's first such death in more than 30 years. On Wednesday, Pennsylvania reported the death of an unvaccinated resident of rural Jefferson County, the sixth measles-associated death in that state this year. Pennsylvania health officials are also investigating a seventh reported death that has not yet met the state's criteria to be classified as measles-associated, according to Fox News.

The cumulative toll reported by state health departments now stands at eight deaths: six in Pennsylvania, one in New York, and one in Wisconsin, according to ABC News. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has reported four measles-associated deaths nationally, a lower figure that reflects differences in how and when states and the federal government classify and count cases.

Nationally, more than 4,800 measles cases have been confirmed this year — the highest count since 1991, nearly a decade before measles was declared eliminated in the United States, according to CNN and ABC News. At least 96% of U.S. cases this year have been among people who are unvaccinated or whose vaccination status is unknown, according to ABC News. An international meeting to assess the status of measles elimination in the United States is scheduled for next week, according to CNN.

State officials urged anyone who has not been vaccinated to get the MMR vaccine and advised people who have been exposed to measles to stay home. Anyone who develops a fever and rash — particularly if they have been exposed to measles or are unvaccinated — should call a clinic or hospital before arriving, so that staff can take steps to prevent further exposure.

Why it matters — A disease eliminated in the U.S. a quarter-century ago is now killing children again, and the Wisconsin death underscores that even infants too young to be vaccinated are at risk when community vaccination rates fall below the level needed to stop transmission.

Sources differ on Total U.S. measles-associated deaths in 2026: 4 measles-associated deaths (foxnews.com (citing CDC)) vs 8 measles-associated deaths (abcnews.com (citing state health department figures))

Reported by thehill.com, foxnews.com, abcnews.com, dhs.wisconsin.gov, jsonline.com, cnn.com