Washington, DC — For years, measles was a relic of the past — an illness parents only read about in history books, thanks to vaccines that had wiped it out in the US. But now, it's back.

In the first three months of 2025, 378 cases have been confirmed in several American states — already outpacing last year's total of 285.

Nowhere has been hit harder than Texas, where 309 cases and 40 hospitalisations have overwhelmed hospitals. Among them was a six-year-old girl who never received the vaccine. She didn’t survive.

And Texas isn't alone. New Mexico has reported 42 cases, including another measles-related death — this time an unvaccinated adult.

Cases are cropping up in Alaska, California, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, New York City, New York State, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Texas, Vermont, and Washington with international travel fuelling the spread.

A virus that moves faster than we can see

Measles is a contagious virus. It doesn't need direct contact to spread — it can stay in the air for up to two hours after an infected person leaves a room. That means exposure can happen anywhere: a school hallway, an airport terminal, or a shopping mall.

Maryland health officials have been scrambling to track potential exposures after two unvaccinated international travelers unknowingly carried the virus around Washington, DC.

For nearly two weeks, they went about their lives — visiting a metro station, a shuttle bus, even a car dealership — before realising they were sick.

"Measles is one of the most contagious diseases in the world," Dr Lucia Donatelli, chief of Maryland's Center for Immunisation, told reporters.

"It is highly transmittable, so the best way that we have to prevent it is by vaccination."

The real enemy: Misinformation

For years, anti-vaccine rhetoric has flooded social media, distorting facts and fueling fear. The result? Some parents now believe the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine is more dangerous than the disease itself.

Dr Emily Richardson, a pediatrician in Houston, sees the consequences every day. "Every parent wants to protect their child," she told TRT World over the phone.

"But when they're bombarded with misleading information, they end up making choices that put their child — and others — in danger."

The facts are clear: The MMR vaccine is 97 percent effective, according to a Yale University paper.

Nearly every confirmed measles case this year has been in an unvaccinated person. The disease isn't just a rash and a fever — it attacks the immune system, can cause pneumonia and brain swelling, and in severe cases, kills.

A crisis that didn't have to happen

In 2000, measles was officially eliminated in the US. The vaccine had done its job. But elimination doesn’t mean eradication — it just meant the virus wasn't circulating here anymore.

It could still be brought in from abroad. And when vaccination rates drop, outbreaks become inevitable, experts say.

There have been three outbreaks reported in 2025 according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and 90 percent of confirmed cases are outbreak-associated.

"This is exactly what we feared," Dr Richardson added. "And it's only going to get worse if we don't turn things around."

Now, state lawmakers are debating tougher vaccine mandates.

"Enough is enough," Dr Richardson said.

"This isn't just about personal choice anymore. When you don't vaccinate, you put vulnerable people at risk — newborns, cancer patients, people with immune disorders. We cannot let misinformation be louder than science."

An invisible threat

The scariest thing about measles is that it spreads before symptoms appear. An infected person can go about their daily life — shopping, commuting, meeting friends while unknowingly exposing dozens, maybe hundreds, of people.

That's exactly what happened in Tennessee, where the state's first measles case of the year was just confirmed. Health officials issued an urgent plea:

"Public health officials are working to identify locations and persons potentially exposed to the virus."

A wake-up call

For many parents, the risk once seemed distant. Now, it's hitting close to home.

The CDC has launched an emergency awareness campaign, urging hesitant parents to reconsider before it's too late.

As per Johns Hopkins, one of the top-ranked hospitals in the nation, a number of compounding factors have led to the spike in measles cases, one of which is actually how effectively we've vaccinated against measles in the past.

"Strong immunisation programmes undermine themselves: When vaccination rates are high, the disease goes away. As a result, people aren’t as concerned about it and don't see the necessity to vaccinate.

"Every parent wants to make the right decision for their child. Between the historically low rates of measles in the US and the prevalence of misinformation and disinformation about childhood vaccines, some parents underestimate the risk of measles and overestimate the risk of the vaccine," Dr Bill Moss, executive director of the International Vaccine Access Center noted.

Doctors like Dr Richardson are left to fight this battle one conversation at a time.

"We don't want to scare people," she said. "But we need them to understand: this isn't a debate. It's not politics. It's science. And the consequences are real."