Health officials in Mecklenburg County are urging parents to make sure their children are up to date on the Measles, Mumps, and Rubella (MMR) vaccine as measles outbreaks have recently been reported in other parts of the United States.
More than 250 cases of measles have been reported in Texas and New Mexico, including two deaths in unvaccinated people.
Measles is caused by a highly contagious virus that's airborne and spreads easily when an infected person breathes, sneezes or coughs.
It is preventable through vaccines, and has been considered eliminated from the U.S. since 2000.
“It is frustrating to see a disease that was once eliminated in the U.S. start to circulate again in communities across the country,” Mecklenburg County Public Health Director Dr. Raynard Washington said. “It is frustrating to see a disease that was once eliminated in the U.S. start to circulate again in communities across the country,” Mecklenburg County Public Health Director Dr. Raynard Washington said. “Measles is a highly contagious and serious illness and our best tool to protect against is vaccination. I encourage parents to make sure their children are up to date on their vaccines to protect their health and prevent outbreaks in our community.”
No measles cases have been reported in Mecklenburg County this year.
Last year, a confirmed measles case in Mecklenburg County was the first case of the virus to be reported in North Carolina since 2018.
A school-age child died of measles in Texas last month, and New Mexico reported its first measles-related death in an adult last week.
Around 90% of unvaccinated people who are exposed to measles will become infected, according to health officials, and about one in five people in the U.S. who get measles will be hospitalized.
Symptoms
The symptoms of measles include:
- Fever
- Runny nose
- Cough
- Red eyes
- Rash
The rash generally appears three to five days after the first symptoms, beginning as flat red spots on the face and then spreading downward to the neck, trunk, arms, legs and feet. When the rash appears, the fever may spike over 104 degrees Fahrenheit, according to the CDC.
How can you treat measles?
There’s no specific treatment for measles, so doctors generally try to alleviate symptoms, prevent complications and keep patients comfortable.
The Centers for Disease Control said children should receive two doses of the MMR vaccine – the first dose at 12 through 15 months of age and the second dose between ages 4 and 6. One dose of the vaccine is 93% effective at preventing measles and two doses is 97% effective, according ot health officials.
People at high risk for infection who got the shots many years ago may want to consider getting a booster if they live in an area with an outbreak, said Scott Weaver with the Global Virus Network, an international coalition. Those may include family members living with someone who has measles or those especially vulnerable to respiratory diseases because of underlying medical conditions.
The MMR vaccine is offered through health care providers and for free or at a low cost at the Mecklenburg County Public Health Immunization Clinic. There will also be a mobile health unit providing vaccines at CMS schools through the spring.
Measles cases have been reported in Alaska, California, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Vermont.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention defines an outbreak as three or more related cases — and there have been three clusters that qualified as outbreaks in 2025.
In the U.S., cases and outbreaks are generally traced to someone who caught the disease abroad.
Childhood vaccination rates have declined nationwide since the pandemic and more parents are claiming religious or personal conscience waivers to exempt their kids from required shots.
The U.S. saw a rise in measles cases in 2024, including an outbreak in Chicago that sickened more than 60. Five years earlier, measles cases were the worst in almost three decades in 2019.
