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WASHINGTON (DC News Now) — The United States is on track to record its highest year for measles cases in more than 30 years, and the D.C. region has been part of the climb.
As of its July 16 update, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had confirmed 2,260 measles cases across the country in 2026, spread across 44 jurisdictions. With more than five months left in the year, the total is already closing in on the 2,289 cases reported for all of 2025, which was itself the highest annual count the country had seen in over three decades. Health officials have warned that summer travel could push this year past that mark.
The vast majority of cases nationwide have been in people who were unvaccinated or whose vaccination status was unknown, according to the CDC. Federal and local health officials continue to point to the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine as the most effective protection, noting that two doses, or being born before 1957, is generally considered full immunity.
Locally, Virginia has seen the most activity in the region. The Virginia Department of Health has reported well over 100 cases in 2026, with the majority tied to an outbreak in Buckingham County, in the central part of the state. The region’s earlier cases were largely travel-related, with infected individuals passing through airports, Metro lines and clinics and prompting a string of public exposure warnings across the DMV.
Maryland has recorded a smaller number of cases. In mid-July, the Maryland Department of Health confirmed five additional cases in a group of central Maryland residents who had traveled together to an area with an active outbreak and flagged a possible exposure at the Carroll Hospital Center emergency department in Westminster. D.C. has also confirmed cases this year.
Measles is one of the most contagious diseases known, spreading through the air and lingering in a space after an infected person has left. Symptoms usually begin seven to 14 days after exposure and include a fever above 101 degrees, a runny nose, a cough and red, water eyes, followed a few days later by a rash that starts on the face and spreads down the body. An infected person can spread the virus from four days before the rash appears to four days after.
Health officials advise anyone who may have been exposed to check their vaccination records and contact a health care provider rather than showing up unannounced at a clinic or emergency room, which risks exposing others. People who are not fully vaccinated are urged to watch for symptoms for 21 days after a possible exposure. Residents with questions can reach their state or district health department, and current exposure sites are posted on each agency’s measles webpage.
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