New York declares measles emergency as 108 cases hit statewide

New York Governor Kathy Hochul issued an executive order on October 5 declaring a State Disaster Emergency in response to rising measles cases. As of October 3, the state had recorded 108 total measles cases, including seven in New York City, with a majority of infections recorded since mid-July. The order allows the state to speed testing and vaccination.straitstimes.com+1

The declaration matters because it expands who can vaccinate and test New Yorkers, at a moment when the US is facing one of its worst measles outbreaks in decades. The executive order signed on October 5 adds paramedics, advanced emergency medical services staff, midwives and pharmacists to the network of vaccine administrators, widening access in rural areas where cases have concentrated.

What the emergency order changes

Since July 15, 92 cases have been reported among under-immunized rural communities across 18 counties in New York State. Local health departments have administered over 1,000 doses of the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine in rural areas since then. Hochul said the emergency measures would protect New Yorkers and support community partners addressing the spread of the disease.abcnews.com

New York's case count reflects a national surge. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recorded 3,887 measles cases as of October 2, the most reported in three decades. Cases have been confirmed in 45 states and Washington, D.C., according to the CDC, with the highest number of illnesses since 1991. Vaccination rates nationwide have been declining.hoodline.com

Pennsylvania has become the largest single outbreak in the US. On October 5, the state reported more than 1,000 confirmed infections, including five deaths. The Pennsylvania Department of Health recorded 1,004 cases across 39 counties, with at least 198 people hospitalised. Lancaster County, in southeastern Pennsylvania, is the epicentre, with 391 cases confirmed so far.

Where the case numbers came from

Two of Pennsylvania's deaths were among unvaccinated adults, an 18-year-old and a 40-year-old. Two others were among infants too young to receive the vaccine. The fifth death was an unvaccinated Lancaster County resident of unknown age. Fewer than 1% of the state's cases were among people fully vaccinated with the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine, according to the state health department.

The measles, mumps and rubella vaccine is 97% effective in preventing infection after two doses, according to the CDC. One dose is 93% effective. During the 2025 to 2026 school year, 92.4% of kindergartners received the vaccine, down from 95.2% in the 2019 to 2020 school year before the COVID-19 pandemic.

Vaccination rates below the 95% threshold leave communities vulnerable. A Cornell University study of more than 5,000 schools across 45 states found that countywide vaccination rates often hid the potential for an outbreak to start in a single school, and that coverage of 95% or higher was associated with outbreaks fizzling out rather than spreading widely.

Why vaccination rates matter

New York has already rolled out a public service announcement for the general public and a briefing for medical providers to raise the statewide vaccination rate, reported on September 17. Most measles cases reported in the state involve adults rather than children, complicating the usual picture of measles as a childhood illness.

Nine of 10 unvaccinated people exposed to an infected person will get measles, according to New York state health commissioner Dr. James McDonald, cited in reporting by WRVO. The risk among the unvaccinated remains severe, and the state's push to raise vaccination rates is the central front in its response.

The CDC said it was deeply saddened to hear of another death in Pennsylvania and that it stood ready to deploy epidemiologists if requested. The agency noted that Texas, South Carolina, Virginia, Kansas, New Mexico and Wisconsin had requested CDC Epi-Aids and worked alongside federal teams to bring outbreaks under control.

Hochul said no one should get seriously ill or die from a vaccine-preventable disease, and that she had taken steps to increase the number of health professionals who can vaccinate and test. The governor received her flu shot on October 5 and urged all New Yorkers to do the same.