A measles outbreak in South Carolina has reached 789 confirmed cases, surpassing a major 2025 outbreak in West Texas and marking the largest surge since the disease was declared eliminated in the United States 26 years ago.
The South Carolina Department of Public Health reported 89 new cases since Friday, signaling that the outbreak remains uncontained. State epidemiologist Dr. Linda Bell expressed surprise at the “disconcerting” speed of the spread, noting that South Carolina’s case count exceeded the seven-month Texas total in just 16 weeks.
The majority of cases are concentrated in Spartanburg County, primarily among unvaccinated individuals or those with unknown vaccination status. According to the sources, the outbreak was first reported among families who immigrated from Ukraine to the county, which currently maintains a 8.2% nonmedical vaccine exemption rate.
Health experts, including former American Academy of Pediatrics state president Dr. Deborah Greenhouse, warned that schools with low vaccination rates have become “tinder boxes” for the highly contagious virus.
The impact has reached 23 schools across the state, with children and teenagers making up the majority of the sickened. Currently, 557 people are in quarantine in South Carolina. The virus has also crossed state lines; cases linked to South Carolina have been documented in North Carolina, California, and Washington, with additional probable cases in Ohio.
In neighboring North Carolina, 170 people are under quarantine in Union County following exposure at a private school where the measles vaccination rate is only 60.1%, far below the 95% required for herd immunity.
The surge comes as the U.S. teeters on the edge of losing its measles elimination status, a milestone that could be reached this fall if the virus continues to circulate for a full year. Despite the record numbers—including 2,255 cases nationwide in 2025—CDC principal deputy director Dr. Ralph Abraham characterized the choice to remain unvaccinated as a matter of “personal freedom” and “the cost of doing business.”
According to the sources, 93% of patients in the current national surge have been unvaccinated. Health officials continue to urge families to comply with isolation and quarantine orders to slow the transmission.