At least 124 new cases of measles have been reported in South Carolina since last Friday, health officials said.
This brings the total number of cases in the outbreak to 434. There are currently more than 400 people in quarantine.
South Carolina has been facing a measles outbreak since early October, with most cases occurring in Spartanburg County, which borders North Carolina.
In recent days, health departments in Georgia, Oregon and Virginia They reported the first cases of measles in their states in 2026.
It comes when the United States registered its increased number of measles cases since 1992. Last year, the United States recorded 2,144 cases and illnesses reported in 44 states.
A sign is seen outside a South Plains Public Health District clinic, Feb. 23, 2025, in Brownfield, Texas.
Julio Cortez/AP
There were nearly 50 outbreaks nationwide last year, compared to 16 in 2024 and just four in 2023, CDC data shows. Almost 90% of cases were associated with outbreaks.
At least three deaths were recorded in 2025, including two among unvaccinated schoolchildren in Texas and one among an unvaccinated adult in New Mexico, marking the first measles deaths in the United States in a decade.
The CDC currently recommends that people receive two doses of the MMR vaccine, the first between 12 and 15 months and the second between 4 and 6 years. One dose is 93% effective and two doses are 97% effective against measles, according to the CDC.
In 2025, 93% of cases occurred among people who were not vaccinated or whose vaccination status was unknown. The remaining 3% were among people who received one dose and 4% were among those who received both recommended doses.
CDC data shows that vaccination rates have lagged in recent years. During the 2024-2025 school year, 92.5% of preschool children received the triple viral vaccineaccording to data. This is down from the 92.7% seen in the previous school year and the 95.2% seen in the 2019-2020 school year, before the COVID-19 pandemic.
Youri Benadjaoud of ABC News contributed to this report.
