Connecticut health officials confirmed Wednesday the state's first case of measles since 2021. The patient is an unvaccinated Fairfield County child under the age of 10.
Health officials said the child recently travelled internationally. They began showing symptoms of measles several days later, including cough, runny nose, congestion, fever and a rash starting at the head and spreading across the body.
Symptoms of measles usually begin seven to 14 days after exposure, health officials said.
The best protection against the virus is to get vaccinated, according to Dr. Manisha Juthani, commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Public Health.
“One dose of measles vaccine is about 93% effective, while two doses are about 97% effective," she said in a statement. "We must ensure we continue to protect those who matter most — children and other vulnerable people — from vaccine preventable illnesses through on-time vaccination."
Even for those three out of 100 vaccinated people that might contract measles if their vaccination did not work completely, “they will have a much, much, much milder case,” Juthani said while speaking at the University of Hartford Thursday. “In fact, some of them may not even know it was the measles, because they may just feel under the weather briefly.”
Measles cases have hit a record high in the U.S. In 2025, there have been more than 1,900 cases as of Dec. 9, according to federal health data. That's the highest count in the U.S. in decades. The World Health Organization said in 2000 that measles had been eliminated from the U.S.
Measles is a highly contagious illness, infecting about nine out of 10 unprotected people who are exposed to it, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The disease can cause serious complications, especially in children younger than 5 years of age.
Juthani said 2025 is likely to become the hallmark year where the U.S. loses its elimination status of measles. Prior to this week, Connecticut was one of eight states left without a reported measles case in 2025 but health officials said it was only a matter of time, with measles reported in New York, Vermont and Rhode Island.
“Sometimes people forget the impact of a disease,” Juthani said. “We've had 25 years of small outbreaks here and there, but they were able to be quashed in their place. What we've seen this year is more sustained transmission around the country, around other countries where people have gone to, particularly our neighbors, Canada and Mexico, but internationally beyond that as well.”
Juthani said the neurological effects of childhood measles can last well into adult years.
“Unfortunately, you may have heard of a child who likely contracted measles in early childhood, who in California passed away earlier this year,” she said. “The childhood vaccination schedule prevents disease.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report, which has been updated.
