Measles outbreak in Kentucky
Measles cases surge past 150 in Kentucky; big outbreak identified in one county
LAUREL COUNTY, Ky. —
Just days after Kentucky's measles case count hit 100, dozens more have been reported.
As of Wednesday, the number of cases reported in the Commonwealth is now 157 for 2026.
Most of those come out of Laurel County, which had seven cases just a few days ago. Now, it has 56, according to the state's dashboard.
Laurel County is in southeast Kentucky,
The dashboard says that outbreak involves people who are unvaccinated from several large households that have been "isolated from the broader community."
In only one case did the person report having the full vaccine. One case had one MMR dose, and the rest didn't have any.
Of the total state count, nine of those cases have led to hospitalization.
So far, no deaths have been reported.
There were only 13 cases overall in 2025, and none were reported the year prior.
Kentucky health officials have warned this is the highest case count in decades. Dr. Steve Stack, with the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services, along with other local health officials, has been encouraging people to get vaccinated.
"We do not need to have measles," Gov. Andy Beshear said last month.
"We have a proven tool that for over a quarter century eliminated it from the United States. The only reason it's resurging now is because of, I think, negligent information and guidance being shared freely. We want people to not feel vilified or maligned. We want people to feel informed."
LAUREL COUNTY, Ky. —
Just days after Kentucky's measles case count hit 100, dozens more have been reported.
As of Wednesday, the number of cases reported in the Commonwealth is now 157 for 2026.
Most of those come out of Laurel County, which had seven cases just a few days ago. Now, it has 56, according to the state's dashboard.
Laurel County is in southeast Kentucky,
The dashboard says that outbreak involves people who are unvaccinated from several large households that have been "isolated from the broader community."
In only one case did the person report having the full vaccine. One case had one MMR dose, and the rest didn't have any.
Of the total state count, nine of those cases have led to hospitalization.
So far, no deaths have been reported.
There were only 13 cases overall in 2025, and none were reported the year prior.
Kentucky health officials have warned this is the highest case count in decades. Dr. Steve Stack, with the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services, along with other local health officials, has been encouraging people to get vaccinated.
"We do not need to have measles," Gov. Andy Beshear said last month.
"We have a proven tool that for over a quarter century eliminated it from the United States. The only reason it's resurging now is because of, I think, negligent information and guidance being shared freely. We want people to not feel vilified or maligned. We want people to feel informed."
