Measles Outbreak in Utah 2025 | Statistics & Facts

Measles Outbreak in Utah, America 2025

The state of Utah is experiencing one of its most significant public health challenges in over three decades as a measles outbreak continues to spread across multiple counties. As of December 2025, health officials have confirmed 115 measles cases throughout the state, marking the highest number of infections Utah has recorded in more than 30 years. This alarming surge represents a dramatic increase from 2024, when Utah reported zero measles cases, and has prompted state epidemiologists to warn that the situation may worsen before improving. The outbreak primarily affects communities with lower vaccination rates, particularly in southwestern Utah near the Arizona border, where the majority of cases have been concentrated.

The 2025 measles outbreak in Utah is part of a broader national crisis, with the United States recording 1,912 confirmed measles cases across 43 jurisdictions as of December 2025. Utah’s outbreak is among the largest and most recent in the country, alongside significant outbreaks in Arizona and South Carolina. Health experts attribute this resurgence to declining vaccination rates, increased vaccine hesitancy following the COVID-19 pandemic, and growing distrust in health institutions. With holiday gatherings and increased indoor activities during winter months, public health officials are bracing for potential acceleration in transmission rates, making vaccination and preventive measures more critical than ever.

Interesting Facts About Measles Outbreak in Utah 2025

Data source: Utah Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) Measles Dashboard, updated December 9, 2025; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), updated December 10, 2025

The data reveals a concerning public health crisis unfolding across Utah, with the 115 confirmed measles cases representing an unprecedented surge for the state in recent decades. The concentration of 82 cases in the Southwest Utah Health District indicates a significant outbreak cluster in Washington County, bordering Arizona, where vaccination rates have fallen below optimal levels. The fact that 26 new cases emerged in just the last three weeks demonstrates active transmission continuing through early December, with health officials warning of potential acceleration during the holiday season when gatherings increase.

Remarkably, despite the high number of infections, Utah has reported zero deaths from measles in 2025, though 12 hospitalizations indicate serious complications requiring medical intervention. The 90% overall vaccination rate among Utahns provides some protection, but falls short of the 95% threshold needed for herd immunity. The 10% kindergarten exemption rate for MMR vaccination creates vulnerable pockets within communities where the virus can spread rapidly. The virus’s extraordinary contagiousness—with 9 out of 10 unvaccinated exposed individuals becoming infected—combined with its ability to remain airborne for up to 2 hours, makes measles particularly dangerous in school settings, healthcare facilities, and public spaces where the majority of Utah exposures have occurred.

Geographic Distribution of Measles Cases in Utah 2025

Data source: Utah Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) Measles Dashboard, December 9, 2025

The geographic distribution of measles cases across Utah in 2025 reveals a highly concentrated outbreak pattern, with the Southwest Utah Health District accounting for 82 cases—representing more than 71% of all state infections. This district, which includes Washington County and borders Mohave County, Arizona, has become the epicenter of what epidemiologists now refer to as the Utah-Arizona outbreak, comprising 254 total cases across both states. The outbreak originated in the twin communities of Colorado City, Arizona, and Hildale, Utah, areas known for having significantly lower vaccination rates, with some schools reporting MMR coverage as low as 78%—well below the critical 95% threshold needed to prevent measles transmission.

Beyond the southwestern concentration, cases have spread to central and northern regions of Utah, including 9 cases in Utah County and 8 cases in Wasatch County, indicating that the outbreak is no longer geographically contained. The presence of cases in Salt Lake County (3 cases) and Davis County (2 cases) demonstrates community spread reaching Utah’s most populous areas. Wasatch High School in Heber City became a notable exposure site with 5 confirmed cases linked to the school in November 2025, prompting health officials to implement strict isolation protocols for unvaccinated students. The geographic expansion of cases from the southwestern border region to communities across the state highlights the highly contagious nature of measles and the effectiveness of the virus in exploiting populations with suboptimal vaccination coverage, making continued vigilance and vaccination efforts essential across all Utah counties.

Vaccination Coverage and Exemption Rates in Utah 2025

Data source: Utah Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) Immunization Dashboard, 2024-25 school year; Utah Epidemiology, December 2025

The vaccination coverage data for Utah in 2025 reveals a concerning decline in immunization rates that has created conditions favorable for measles outbreaks. While 90% of Utahns overall are vaccinated against measles, this falls short of the 95% coverage rate required to maintain herd immunity and protect vulnerable populations who cannot be vaccinated, including infants under 12 months, pregnant women, and immunocompromised individuals. The 10% kindergarten exemption rate for the MMR vaccine represents a substantial increase from 4.3% in the 2014-15 school year, indicating a growing trend of vaccine hesitancy that accelerated following the COVID-19 pandemic.

The most alarming vaccination gaps exist in specific regions and communities across Utah. The Southwest Utah Health District, where 71% of measles cases have occurred, reports MMR coverage of only 78.5% among kindergarteners—a catastrophically low rate that mirrors vaccination levels in Gaines County, Texas, which experienced a major outbreak earlier in 2025 resulting in over 800 cases and two child deaths. In Wasatch County, 13% of seventh graders lack documentation of receiving the required two-dose MMR vaccine, contributing to the five measles cases linked to Wasatch High School in November. The decline from 90.2% adequate vaccination in 2014-15 to 86.9% in the 2024-25 school year for in-person kindergarteners demonstrates a steady erosion of protective immunity across Utah’s youngest school-age population. Health officials emphasize that the 97% effectiveness rate of the complete two-dose MMR vaccine makes vaccination the single most important tool for preventing measles infection and stopping outbreak spread.

Age Demographics and Hospitalization Data in Utah 2025

Data source: Utah Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), December 2025; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), December 2025; CIDRAP analysis, November 2025

The age distribution of measles cases in Utah during 2025 demonstrates that children bear the disproportionate burden of this outbreak, with approximately 70% of all infections occurring in individuals under 18 years old. This pediatric concentration reflects both the high exposure risk in school settings—where multiple outbreaks at Water Canyon Elementary, Three Falls Elementary, and Wasatch High School have occurred—and the reality that children in communities with high vaccine exemption rates face greatest vulnerability. The 12 hospitalizations in Utah represent a 10.4% hospitalization rate, slightly lower than the 12% national rate, with state epidemiologist Dr. Leisha Nolen noting that hospitalized patients have experienced “fairly minor” complications and been discharged relatively quickly.

Despite the absence of deaths in Utah, the potential severity of measles complications remains a serious concern, particularly for the youngest children. Nationally, 21% of children under five years who contract measles require hospitalization, compared to lower rates in older age groups. The virus can cause pneumonia, brain inflammation (encephalitis), seizures, and a rare but fatal condition called subacute sclerosing panencephalitis that emerges years after apparent recovery. Pregnant women infected with measles face risks of miscarriage, premature delivery, and low-birthweight babies. The fact that 9 out of 10 unvaccinated people exposed to measles become infected—combined with the virus’s ability to remain airborne for two hours—makes protection of vulnerable populations through high community vaccination rates absolutely essential. Utah health officials have specifically recommended that infants aged 6 to 12 months in affected areas receive an early additional MMR dose to provide protection during this high-transmission period.

Timeline and Outbreak Progression in Utah 2025

Data source: Utah Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) Measles Response Timeline, December 2025

The timeline of the measles outbreak in Utah during 2025 reveals a pattern of initial sporadic imported cases followed by sustained community transmission that accelerated dramatically in the fall and early winter months. The outbreak began with two separate travelers with measles passing through Utah in late May 2025, though neither resulted in secondary infections among Utah residents. The first confirmed cases among Utah residents emerged on June 26, 2025, when five people were diagnosed—three in Utah County and two in the Southwest Utah Public Health District. Between June 26 and July 21, Utah reported 11 total cases, all involving unvaccinated individuals, prompting health officials to begin intensive contact tracing and exposure notification efforts.

A four-week period without new cases from July 22 to August 12 provided temporary relief, leading the Utah DHHS to suspend weekly updates. However, this lull proved deceptive, as cases began reemerging in late August and September, spreading beyond the initial outbreak clusters. The outbreak gained momentum throughout October and November, with 24 new cases reported in just three weeks leading up to Thanksgiving. By November 25, the case count reached 102, and health officials warned that holiday gatherings and travel would likely accelerate transmission further. Their predictions proved accurate, as 13 additional cases were confirmed in the first nine days of December, bringing the total to 115 cases as of December 9. The 26 cases identified in the last three weeks of the reporting period demonstrate ongoing active transmission, with new exposure locations continuing to be identified across multiple counties, from childcare facilities in South Jordan to urgent care clinics in St. George and schools in Heber City.

Exposure Sites and High-Risk Locations in Utah 2025

Data source: Utah Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) Measles Exposure Locations, updated December 11, 2025

The exposure sites identified during Utah’s 2025 measles outbreak span a diverse range of locations, demonstrating how easily this highly contagious virus spreads through communities. Schools have emerged as particularly significant transmission venues, with Water Canyon Elementary School in Hildale experiencing multiple exposure events throughout the fall, and Wasatch High School in Heber City becoming a major exposure site in mid-November with five linked cases. The November 15 performance of “The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical” at Wasatch High School created an especially concerning exposure scenario, with attendees present from 5:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. during a period when infected individuals were contagious.

Healthcare facilities, ironically, have become common exposure sites as infected individuals seek medical care unaware of their measles status. The Hurricane Emergency Department, St. George Regional Emergency Room, and multiple urgent care centers in southwestern Utah have had multiple exposure periods documented between October and December 2025. This pattern highlights the critical importance of health officials’ guidance to call ahead before visiting healthcare facilities if measles is suspected, protecting vulnerable populations who frequent these settings—including pregnant women, infants, cancer patients, and immunocompromised individuals. Public spaces where families gather, such as the Treehouse Children’s Museum in Ogden, The Rush Funplex in Syracuse, and retail locations like Walmart in Layton and Macey’s in Provo, have also been identified as exposure sites, with infected individuals present during peak shopping hours. The most recent exposure at Kopper Kids Childcare Facility at Bingham High School in South Jordan from December 1-5 involving an unvaccinated individual demonstrates that new exposure sites continue to emerge across the state, requiring ongoing public vigilance and monitoring through the symptom watch periods extending into late December 2025.

Vaccination Requirements and School Impact in Utah 2025

Data source: Utah Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) Immunization Program, 2024-25 school year; Utah Administrative Code R386-702

The vaccination requirements for Utah schools in 2025 mandate that students receive two doses of MMR vaccine—one before kindergarten entry and a second before entering seventh grade. However, Utah law permits exemptions for medical, religious, and personal belief reasons, and the utilization of these exemptions has increased dramatically over the past decade, rising from 4.3% in the 2014-15 school year to 10.1% for all students (including online students) in the 2024-25 school year. This 10% gap in vaccination coverage falls significantly short of the 95% threshold needed for herd immunity, creating vulnerable populations within schools where measles can spread rapidly once introduced.

The impact of low vaccination rates on Utah schools during the 2025 outbreak has been substantial. When measles cases are confirmed at a school, unvaccinated students face a mandatory 21-day quarantine period—the maximum incubation time for measles. At Wasatch High School, where five cases were linked to the campus in mid-November, this policy required unvaccinated students to remain home from school for three weeks, disrupting education and creating childcare challenges for families. Health officials sent a joint letter from the Wasatch County School District and Wasatch County Health Department directing unvaccinated students who may have been exposed to stay home for the full 21 days. While school officials reported that attendance on the Monday following the notification was not significantly affected, the potential for extended absences during outbreak periods represents a serious consequence of suboptimal vaccination rates. The Southwest Utah Public Health District, where 78.5% of kindergarteners are adequately vaccinated, faces the highest risk of sustained school-based transmission, with elementary schools in Hildale and Hurricane experiencing multiple exposure events throughout the fall and early winter of 2025.

National Context and Comparison Data for 2025

Data source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), December 10, 2025; State Health Department Reports, December 2025

The United States measles situation in 2025 represents the worst outbreak year in more than three decades, with 1,912 confirmed cases as of December 10—significantly exceeding the 1,274 cases recorded in 2019, which was previously the highest recent year. Utah’s 115 cases make it home to the second-largest active outbreak in the country, surpassed only by the West Texas outbreak that peaked earlier in the year with approximately 800 cases before being declared over in August 2025. That Texas outbreak resulted in two child deaths—an 8-year-old unvaccinated girl and another school-aged unvaccinated child—marking the first measles deaths in the United States since 2019.

The Utah-Arizona outbreak, now comprising 254 combined cases (115 in Utah, 176 in Arizona, with 172 of Arizona’s cases concentrated in Mohave County), represents the second-largest outbreak nationwide and remains actively spreading as of mid-December. The outbreak originated in the twin communities of Colorado City, Arizona, and Hildale, Utah, areas with historically low vaccination rates and close community ties. The 47 outbreaks reported across the United States in 2025 represent a nearly threefold increase from the 16 outbreaks in 2024, with 88% of confirmed cases being outbreak-associated—a higher proportion than the 69% seen in 2024. This shift indicates that once measles enters a community with suboptimal vaccination coverage, it spreads efficiently through multiple generations of transmission. The 92% of US measles patients who are unvaccinated or have unknown vaccination status underscores that this outbreak is almost entirely preventable through vaccination. With national kindergarten MMR coverage declining from 95.2% in the 2019-20 school year to 92.5% in the 2024-25 school year, the United States faces a genuine risk of losing its measles elimination status if the virus maintains continuous transmission for 12 consecutive months—a threshold that could be reached in January 2026 if current outbreak chains are not broken.

Wastewater Detection and Surveillance in Utah 2025

Data source: Utah Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) Wastewater Surveillance Dashboard, October 28, 2025

Wastewater surveillance for measles represents an innovative public health tool that Utah DHHS has deployed during the 2025 outbreak to detect viral presence in communities. When measles virus is detected in wastewater, it indicates that one or more people in or traveling through that area are currently infected and shedding the virus through their stool. This surveillance method cannot determine how many infected individuals are present—the detection could represent a single person or multiple people—but it provides valuable early warning signals of measles activity in a community, potentially identifying transmission before all cases are clinically diagnosed and reported.

As of the most recent wastewater data from October 28, 2025, measles virus was detected in the wastewater of Davis County, Southwest Utah, and Utah County health jurisdictions during the latest sampling period, confirming ongoing viral circulation in these regions. The Bear River health jurisdiction showed detection in a sample taken 1-7 days before the most recent sample, indicating recent measles activity. These findings align with the confirmed case distribution, as the Southwest Utah Health District has reported 82 of the state’s 115 cases and continues to see active transmission. The absence of detections in Salt Lake County and Weber-Morgan despite confirmed cases in those areas suggests either that infected individuals had not been shedding virus into the wastewater system during sampling, or that case numbers remained too low for consistent detection. The lack of sampling sites in San Juan and Central Utah health jurisdictions represents a gap in surveillance coverage. Wastewater surveillance provides a complementary monitoring tool alongside traditional case reporting, helping public health officials understand the geographic scope of outbreak activity and potentially detect unreported or asymptomatic infections that might otherwise go unnoticed.

Prevention Recommendations and Public Health Response in Utah 2025

Data source: Utah Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) Measles Response Guidelines, December 2025; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Recommendations

The public health response to Utah’s 2025 measles outbreak has centered on aggressive vaccination promotion, detailed contact tracing, and community education about exposure risks. State epidemiologist Dr. Leisha Nolen and local health officials have consistently emphasized that the MMR vaccine remains the most effective prevention tool, with two doses providing 97% protection against measles infection. In response to the outbreak’s concentration in southwest Utah, health officials made the unusual recommendation that infants aged 6 to 12 months living in or traveling to Washington County receive an early additional dose of MMR vaccine—a departure from the standard schedule that typically begins at 12-15 months. This early dose provides critical protection during the outbreak period, though infants receiving this early dose still need the standard two-dose series at 12-15 months and 4-6 years.

Contact tracing has become a massive undertaking, with health departments investigating each confirmed case to identify potential exposures and notify at-risk individuals. When measles cases are confirmed, health officials work to identify everyone who may have been exposed at schools, healthcare facilities, public events, and other venues. The Utah DHHS has established an anonymous online survey available in English and Spanish that individuals can complete if they were present at identified exposure locations to assess their measles immunity status and receive personalized guidance. The state has also implemented robust public communication, maintaining an updated measles dashboard that is refreshed every Tuesday at 3:00 PM, publishing detailed exposure location lists with specific dates and times, and distributing educational materials to schools, childcare centers, camps, and businesses. Health officials urge anyone developing measles symptoms—high fever above 101°F (38.3°C) with cough, runny nose, red watery eyes, and subsequently a rash—to stay home, avoid contact with others, and call their healthcare provider before visiting to prevent exposing vulnerable individuals in waiting rooms. The coordinated response has successfully prevented deaths in Utah.

Disclaimer: This research report is compiled from publicly available sources. While reasonable efforts have been made to ensure accuracy, no representation or warranty, express or implied, is given as to the completeness or reliability of the information. We accept no liability for any errors, omissions, losses, or damages of any kind arising from the use of this report.

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