Measles math: What to know about 1,001 measles cases across the country
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports there have been 1,001 confirmed measles cases in the U.S. this year. It’s the second-highest case count in 25 years, topped only by 2019, when more than 1,200 measles cases were detected. The best way to contain measles is two doses of the MMR vaccine (measles, mumps and rubella).
Here are numbers to help you understand how measles is spreading now.
1,001 cases:
The CDC keeps track of confirmed cases and is updating its count on a weekly basis. On May 2, it reported 935 cases. On Friday, it reported cases have ticked past the thousand mark, to 1,001.
31 jurisdictions:
Measles cases have been reported in 31 jurisdictions, up from 30 on May 1. Cases have been reported in more than half of U.S. states this year, but not all of those states have full-fledged outbreaks.
14 outbreaks:
An outbreak is defined as 3 or more related cases. So while the total number of cases is important, the number of outbreaks shows where the virus is spreading. The number of outbreaks went from 12 last week to 14 this week.
By far the largest outbreak is centered in west Texas, where measles has been spreading since January. Reported cases in that outbreak totaled 683 last week and 709 this week.
3 deaths
Two unvaccinated, otherwise healthy children in Texas have died of the disease. One adult in New Mexico was diagnosed with measles posthumously.
18 people
In a population where no one is vaccinated, a single person sick with measles could go on to infect up to 18 others on average. By comparison, when 82% of a population is vaccinated, a sick person would infect about 2 to 3 other unvaccinated people on average.
95% vaccination rate
To prevent outbreaks from spreading within a community, there needs to be a vaccination rate of 95%, according to the CDC. Below that threshold, a community’s herd immunity can begin to erode. In Gaines County, Texas, the epicenter of the outbreak in that state and where measles is still spreading, the kindergarten vaccination rate against measles is just under 82%.
Herd immunity means that enough members of a community are immune to a contagious disease that it is unlikely to keep spreading because there aren’t enough people vulnerable to infection. Herd immunity protects people with weakened immune systems and children who have not yet completed their two-shot series of the measles vaccine.
12 months
It’s an open question how long measles will keep spreading in the U.S. The Texas outbreak, the biggest one, began in January. If any single outbreak continues to result in ongoing transmission for more than 12 months, the U.S. will lose its measles “elimination” status. That’s a technical term in public health for contagions that have been well-controlled for 12 months or more. The U.S. has had that status for about 25 years.
Fired Copyright Office head sues Trump administration over removal
Shira Perlmutter's termination came shortly after the Copyright Office published a long-anticipated report on artificial intelligence.
Judge blocks Trump admin’s move to bar Harvard from enrolling international students
This comes in response to a lawsuit Harvard filed on Friday morning, challenging the Trump administration's abrupt move to revoke the school's ability to enroll foreign students.
The White House rejects a watchdog finding that it’s breaking the law over halted funds
The White House budget office rejected the conclusion of a nonpartisan congressional watchdog that said the Trump administration is breaking the law by not spending funds as directed by Congress.
What should happen to George Floyd Square? The community is divided
Five years after George Floyd was murdered by a Minneapolis police officer, the future of the intersection where it happened is uncertain. Today, a memorial is set up in the partially blocked street. But some want to move on. How does a community reckon with its past and confront its future?
Mission: Impossible’s overblown ‘Final Reckoning’ still thrills
The two hour, 49 minute conclusion to the seven-sequel franchise is self-congratulatory and inanely plotted. But, as always, it's fun to watch Tom Cruise, now 62, execute eye-popping stunts.
Ukraine and Russia begin the largest prisoner-of-war exchange since the invasion
Ukraine and Russia have begun the exchange of 1,000 prisoners of war, the largest such swap since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
