US hits most cases of 'world's most contagious disease' in 35 years — and it's only July

Less than seven months into 2026, the United States has already reached a 35-year high for annual measles cases.

As of Tuesday, there are 2,295 confirmed cases across the country, according to Johns Hopkins University's US measles tracker — which has published the more up-to-date data than the CDC.

That surpasses 2025's record-breaking total of 2,289 for the entire year — a number that had been startling because it was the highest since a 1991 outbreak that infected 9,500.