MEASLES

VADS CORNER — Measles (rubeola) · Bangladesh 2026 · United States 2026
First posted 18 October 2026 · Figures and links checked 18 October 2026

Measles is back in the news for the wrong reasons. Two countries with very different health systems, Bangladesh and the United States, are in the middle of their worst outbreaks in decades, and for much the same reason: children who were not vaccinated, or not vaccinated twice. This page is a one-stop reference. It starts with the disease and the vaccine, then gives each outbreak its own section with the dated figures, the official reports, the journal papers and the links. Measles is a paramyxovirus (genus Morbillivirus), in the same family as the Nipah virus I followed on this site from 1999. Nipah belongs to a different genus, Henipavirus, but Hendra virus, its first-known relative, was originally called equine morbillivirus.

My own writing on measles

Eliminated, Until It Wasn’t

Kerbside Consult 17/2026, 16 September 2026. How two large 2026 outbreaks arrived by different routes, and what this means for Malaysia.

What to Do If You Think It’s Measles

Kerbside Consult 17a/2026, 16 September 2026. A practical guide for patients and families; companion to the article above.

Before You Travel: Measles and the MMR

Kerbside Consult 17b/2026, 16 September 2026. A pre-travel vaccination checklist for Malaysian families; companion to the article above.

Read the labels before comparing numbers. Suspected cases are reports awaiting or lacking confirmation; they are not all proven measles. Laboratory-confirmed cases have laboratory evidence. A surveillance category called “confirmed” need not mean every case was individually laboratory tested. Do not add suspected and confirmed totals: categories may overlap or change during investigation. Different reporting periods and surveillance systems prevent a direct comparison of national risk between Bangladesh and the United States.

NEW added in this edition CHECK could not be re-opened or fully confirmed — verify before relying on it

On this page:
The disease Vaccination Bangladesh United States Journal articles General resources About the figures

Measles: the disease

Measles is one of the most contagious infections known. It spreads through the air, and the virus stays infective in a room or on surfaces for up to two hours. According to the WHO fact sheet (15 July 2026), one infected person can generate up to 18 secondary infections, and a patient can pass it on from four days before the rash appears to four days after.

Onset. Symptoms usually begin 7–14 days after exposure: high fever, runny nose, cough, red watery eyes and small white spots inside the cheeks (Koplik spots). The rash appears 3–5 days later, starting on the face and upper neck and spreading downwards over about three days.
Complications. Pneumonia, severe diarrhoea with dehydration, ear infection, encephalitis and blindness. Most deaths come from complications. Children under five, adults over 30, the malnourished (especially with vitamin A deficiency), the immunocompromised and pregnant women are at highest risk. Measles also weakens the immune system for a time afterwards.
Treatment. There is no specific antiviral. Care is supportive: fluids, nutrition, antibiotics for secondary infection. WHO recommends two doses of vitamin A, on diagnosis and the next day, for every suspected case in a child under five. It does not replace vaccination.
Global burden. WHO estimates about 95,000 measles deaths in 2024, mostly in unvaccinated or under-vaccinated children under five, down from 780,000 in 2000. Vaccination averted nearly 59 million deaths between 2000 and 2024.

The typical course of measles. The patient becomes infectious about when the first symptoms appear, before the rash makes anyone think of measles. Timings are typical, not exact: the rash usually appears 10–14 days after exposure (range 7–23 days), early symptoms begin 3–5 days before it, the rash spreads from the face to the feet over about 3 days and lasts 4–8 days. Sources: WHO measles fact sheet (15 July 2026) and WHO Disease Outbreak News 598.

If measles is suspected: call the clinic or hospital before attending, so that assessment can be arranged without exposing other patients in the waiting room. Seek urgent help for breathing difficulty, drowsiness or reduced responsiveness. Follow local public-health instructions.

Authoritative disease information

Vaccination and prevention

Two doses. WHO recommends two doses of a measles-containing vaccine. The first is usually given at 9 months where measles is common and at 12–15 months elsewhere; the second later in childhood. CDC gives the effectiveness of two doses as 97% and of one dose as 93%.
The 95% rule. Community protection needs coverage of about 95% with both doses, and in every district, not just on the national average. Pockets of unvaccinated children are where outbreaks start.
Global coverage is not there. WHO reports that in 2025 about 84% of children received the first dose and 77% both doses, and that about 29 million infants remained under-protected.
After exposure. In WHO’s advice for susceptible contacts, a dose of vaccine within 3 days of exposure, or normal human immunoglobulin up to 6 days where vaccine is contraindicated or too late, with infants, pregnant women and the immunocompromised first in line.
Outbreak response. Emergency mass campaigns can lift immunity quickly. Bangladesh’s 2026 campaign (below) is a recent example.

Dosing schedules, outbreak doses (including early doses for infants) and travel advice depend on age and national guidance. Check with a clinician or your local immunisation service.

Vaccine and policy references

WHO position paper on measles vaccines (April 2017)
WHO — Measles and rubella strategic framework 2021–2030
WHO — Measles outbreak guide (2022)
Progress towards measles elimination — worldwide, 2000–2024 (Weekly Epidemiological Record 2025;100:591–604) — the source of WHO’s deaths-averted estimate
Measles & Rubella Partnership
WHO Immunization Data portal (country coverage)
CDC — Measles vaccination · Vaccine recommendations for providers · Plan for travel
Ministry of Health Malaysia CHECK — for the Malaysian immunisation schedule; I have not linked a specific page.

Bangladesh

SURVEILLANCE SNAPSHOT Reporting period: 15 March–14 October 2026. Source: IFRC GO / Bangladesh Red Crescent field report, 15 October 2026, citing Ministry of Health data. CHECK

Bangladesh — cumulative outbreak figures
Measure	Count	Classification
Measles cases	208,570	Suspected
Measles cases	22,840	Laboratory-confirmed

Source qualification: these counts follow the report’s narrative. Its numeric summary displays inconsistent category labels and has not been used. The narrative reports 119 suspected cases in its latest 24-hour period; that is a daily figure, not a weekly total. No weekly change is calculated here.

How the figures have moved

Each row is a separate source with its own reporting period. Read across a row, not down a column.

Bangladesh — dated reports, from first notification
Source	Period	Suspected	Laboratory-confirmed	Deaths
WHO Disease Outbreak News 598 (23 Apr)	15 Mar–14 Apr	19,161	about 2,900 (the DON text gives both 2,897 and 2,973) CHECK	166 suspected (CFR 0.9%); 30 confirmed
Rabbi et al., Emerg Infect Dis 2026	2 Apr–27 May	67,079	8,834	472 among suspected; 88 among confirmed
Bhuiya et al., Emerg Infect Dis 2026	15 Mar–13 Sep	170,638	20,006	919 among suspected; 100 among confirmed
IFRC GO field report (15 Oct)	15 Mar–14 Oct	208,570	22,840	not recorded here

What happened

Notification. Bangladesh notified WHO on 4 April 2026 of a nationwide rise in cases. By mid-April transmission was reported in 58 of 64 districts across all eight divisions, with the heaviest burden in Dhaka (especially the informal settlements), Rajshahi, Chattogram and Khulna. WHO assessed national risk as high and regional risk as high. Ref: WHO DON598.
Who was affected. In the WHO report 79% of cases were in children under five, 66% under two, and 33% were infants under nine months, too young for the routine first dose. The UN situation report of 25 June gave 81% under five. Deaths were mainly in unvaccinated children under two.
Why. WHO attributes the outbreak to suboptimal population immunity: a nationwide stockout of the measles-rubella (MR) vaccine in 2024–2025, routine immunisation gaps, and no regular nationwide supplementary MR campaign since 2020. The peer-reviewed accounts below add political upheaval, procurement changes and disrupted vitamin A supplementation, and describe it as preventable.
Response. An emergency MR campaign began on 5 April in 30 upazilas of 18 priority districts (children aged 6–59 months), supported by UNICEF, WHO and Gavi, and went nationwide from 20 April. The UN situation report of 25 June recorded more than 18.4 million children vaccinated, 102% of the 18 million target, with 94% coverage in the Rohingya camps of Cox’s Bazar. A second nationwide MR drive for 3.4 million children aged 6–59 months began on 26 September, according to bdnews24 (7 October) CHECK.
Genotype. A hospital study in Dhaka found genotype B3, with a median age of 8 months among confirmed cases (61% under nine months) and 79% unvaccinated. This is a small tertiary-hospital series, so treat it as indicative only. See Nasif et al.

Official and surveillance sources

DGHS Bangladesh — press releases (the daily Ministry of Health tallies)
DGHS measles bulletin — the view retrieved during the earlier check showed zero-filled fields and an older date. That is not evidence of zero cases. Use a dated, completed release before replacing the snapshot above. CHECK
WHO Disease Outbreak News: Measles — Bangladesh (23 April 2026)
ReliefWeb — Bangladesh: Measles Outbreak, March 2026 (collected reports, including the IFRC series)
WHO Immunization Data — Bangladesh MR1 and MR2 coverage

UN, Red Crescent and NGO reports

UNICEF Bangladesh — emergency measles-rubella campaign launched with WHO and Gavi (5 April 2026)
Inter-Cluster Coordination Group — Situation Report #4, Measles Outbreak (21 May 2026)
UN Bangladesh — Situation Report #5, Measles Outbreak (25 June 2026)
UNICEF Bangladesh Humanitarian Situation Report No. 75 (mid-year, 30 June 2026) CHECK
Bangladesh Red Crescent Society — Situation Report 1 (9 April 2026)
IFRC — Bangladesh Measles DREF Operational Update (MDRBD039) CHECK · IFRC GO field report #3 (15 October 2026)
Save the Children — families urged to vaccinate children (11 May 2026)

Journal articles on the 2026 outbreak

Abstracts read via PubMed. Figures quoted above come from the abstracts of the two Emerging Infectious Diseases papers; check the full text before quoting them further.

Bhuiya S, Shuvo TA, Hassan MZ, et al. The Impermanence of Public Health Gains — Lessons Learned from Measles Resurgence, Bangladesh, 2026. Emerg Infect Dis 2026;32(11). DOI
Rabbi MF, Muztahid P, Al Mahdi F. Nationwide Surveillance and Control Measures during Large Measles Outbreak, Bangladesh, 2026. Emerg Infect Dis 2026;32(11). DOI
Nasif MAO, Sultana S, Rahman M, et al. Genomic Epidemiology of Measles Viruses Circulating During the 2026 Nationwide Measles Outbreak in Bangladesh. Int J Infect Dis 2026:109158. DOI
Hassan MZ, Islam MA, Mahmood AS, et al. Measles resurgence in Bangladesh: a preventable crisis in a transitioning immunisation system. Lancet Reg Health Southeast Asia 2026;53:100787 (letter). DOI
Hossain MS. Beyond immunity gaps: health-system constraints and measles mortality in Bangladesh. Trop Med Health 2026;54(1) (letter). DOI
Jahan Y, Aziz AB. Measles outbreaks as signals of governance failure: lessons from Bangladesh’s 2026 immunisation collapse. Vaccine 2026;88:128924 (commentary). DOI
Khan MK. Measles Outbreak in Bangladesh: An Urgent Call to Reinforce Immunization and Public Health Resilience. Mymensingh Med J 2026;35(3):668–669. PubMed
Mahase E. Measles death toll exceeds 1100 as Bangladesh struggles with outbreak. BMJ 2026;395:e101120 (news). DOI
PubMed search: measles Bangladesh 2026

News and background

US supports measles-rubella vaccination drive for 3.4m children in Bangladesh — bdnews24 (7 October 2026)
Measles outbreak claims six more lives, death toll nears 1,000 — IANS (31 August 2026)
2026 Bangladesh measles outbreak — Wikipedia

United States of America

SURVEILLANCE SNAPSHOT Reporting period: 2026 year to date, through 15 October 2026. CDC page updated 16 October 2026.

USA — cumulative confirmed cases, 2026
Measure	Count	Classification
Measles cases in 2026	4,410	Confirmed cases reported to CDC
Jurisdictions reporting	47 (4,392 cases), plus 18 cases among international visitors	Confirmed
New outbreaks reported in 2026	42	Three or more related cases
Outbreak-associated cases	4,228 of 4,410 (96%): 2,844 from outbreaks starting in 2026; 1,384 from outbreaks that began in 2025	Confirmed
Deaths in 2026	2	CDC count, “subject to change”
Full year 2025, for comparison	2,289 (48 outbreaks, 90% outbreak-associated)	Confirmed

Source: CDC — Measles Cases and Outbreaks. CDC’s weekly release reflects reports received by noon Thursday. Counts are preliminary and may be revised. This is a year-to-date total, not new cases in one week. CDC says it is aware of probable cases reported by jurisdictions, but the page counts confirmed cases only.

What is going on

Elimination status is under review. Measles was declared eliminated in the US in 2000. Elimination is lost if the same chain of transmission runs unbroken for 12 months or more. PAHO’s Regional Verification Commission postponed its review of the US and Mexico from April to its regular meeting in November 2026. The Americas as a region already lost its measles-free status in November 2025, when endemic transmission was judged re-established in Canada. See the PAHO statements below.
Falling kindergarten coverage. CDC reports national MMR coverage in kindergartners down from 95.2% in 2019–2020 to 92.4% in 2025–2026, leaving roughly 280,000 kindergartners unprotected that year, with much lower coverage in some communities. Coverage averages hide the pockets where outbreaks take hold.
South Carolina. The Upstate outbreak, which began in October 2025, reached 997 cases and was declared over on 27 April 2026, after 42 days (twice the incubation period of 21 days) without a new case. It was the largest in the US in about 30 years, and the CDC nowcasting paper below analyses it.
Pennsylvania. The state health department reported 731 confirmed cases in 38 counties and four measles-associated deaths in mid-September 2026, after its first two deaths in 35 years on 25 August. CDC’s national count is 2 deaths and is still being updated, so state and federal figures differ. Use the state dashboard for the current picture. CHECK
Elsewhere. CDC points to Utah, Maryland, Wisconsin and Delaware as having current real-time pages. Use the state links below rather than CDC for local counts, since states publish on different schedules.

Official and surveillance sources

State health departments

Elimination status — PAHO

PAHO — Measles elimination status in the United States and Mexico (16 January 2026)
PAHO — Update on the review of measles elimination status (2 March 2026; review moved to November 2026)

Journal articles on the US outbreaks (CDC MMWR)

Abstracts read via PubMed.

Mathis AD, Raines K, Filardo TD, et al. Measles Update — United States, January 1–April 17, 2025. MMWR 2025;74(14):232–238. DOI
Wang D, Rogers CC, Lutz CS, et al. Characteristics of Patients Hospitalized with Measles During an Outbreak — West Texas, January–March 2025. MMWR 2026;75(20):252–257. DOI
Ly AN, Shotts A, Torres T, et al. Measles Outbreak in a Child Care Facility — Lubbock, Texas, March–April 2025. MMWR 2026;75(21):266–270. DOI
Stanislawski E, Romero A, Holzinger N, et al. Measles Outbreak — New Mexico, 2025. MMWR 2026;75(9):111–115. DOI
Metz AR, Barnes M, Andresen K, et al. Measles Outbreak Associated with an Infectious Traveler — Colorado, May–June 2025. MMWR 2026;75(4):48–54. DOI
Miller PB, Routledge I, Pollock ED, et al. Use of Nowcasting to Estimate Real-Time Transmission Trends During a Measles Outbreak — South Carolina, October 2025–March 2026. MMWR 2026;75(33):516–521. DOI
Pray I, Roguet A, Dutcher HA, et al. Genotype-Specific Detection of Measles Virus Using Wastewater Surveillance — Wisconsin, February 2026. MMWR 2026;75(27):344–348. DOI
PubMed search: measles United States 2026

News and background

CIDRAP — Measles news CHECK — the weekly CDC updates are reported here; I confirmed individual CIDRAP stories but not this index page.
Contagion Live — weekly measles update (2 October 2026 edition)

Journal articles — background and searches

PubMed searches

Journals

General resources

About the figures on this page

The case counts here are a snapshot as of 18 October 2026. This page does not update itself, and both outbreaks are still moving, so the numbers will be out of date soon after you read them. Each figure is shown with its source, reporting period and case classification so you can check it against the original.

For the latest United States figures, go to the CDC measles page, which is updated weekly with reports received by noon on Thursday, or to your state health department for local counts.
For the latest Bangladesh figures, use the DGHS press releases, the ReliefWeb outbreak page and the WHO Disease Outbreak News.
Counts are provisional. Reporting delays and case reclassification mean totals can be revised, sometimes downwards.
Compare like with like. Only compare two figures from the same source that cover the same period and use the same definition. A change in a cumulative total is a change in reported cases, not necessarily new cases that week.

This page is revised from time to time as new official reports are published.

First posted 18 October 2026
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