RFK Jr. tells anti-vaccine activists they have a "friend in the White House"
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. spoke at a conference hosted by an organization he once led that has promoted doubts about vaccines.
Watch CBS News
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. spoke at a conference hosted by an organization he once led that has promoted doubts about vaccines.
CBS News has been tracking a record number of measles cases and outbreaks around the country in 2026. The majority of cases are among those who haven't been vaccinated.
Florida has 155 measles cases so far in 2026 and a vaccination rate well below the herd immunity threshold, according to the Florida Department of Health.
Utah's weekly measles case count has fallen. The national tally hasn't, and a newborn who's too young to be vaccinated is caught in between.
The Sunshine state is on track to be the second-highest, with only nine cases behind Utah, and the numbers lagging by five days.
After a year of ongoing measles outbreaks that have sickened more than 2,400 people, the United States is poised to lose its status as a measles-free country.
CBS News has been tracking a record number of measles cases around the country after an outbreak in West Texas that led to the deaths of two children.
More than 130 unvaccinated students exposed to measles in South Carolina schools are quarantining, according to local health officials.
The CDC officially adopted recommendations made by the agency's vaccine advisory committee, whose members were hand-picked by Secretary Kennedy.
President Trump's suggestion that the combination measles, mumps and rubella vaccine should be separated marks a sharp break from decades of immunization practice.
Deputy HHS secretary Jim O'Neill is also serving as acting CDC director as RFK Jr.'s newly appointed vaccine advisory panel prepares for its first meeting.
Vaccination coverage among kindergartners decreased for all reported vaccines during the 2024 to 2025 school year, data posted to the CDC website showed.
Health officials reported more than 1,200 cases this year -across 38 states, most of them are in Texas.
The number of measles cases in the United States has surpassed 2019's wave of infections, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data.
About three dozen of the nearly 1,200 measles infections in 2025 have been in people with two measles vaccine doses, the CDC says.
The CDC's new "checklist" comes amid a deadly year of measles outbreaks that is now near record levels.
Of the 2,066 counties the study looked at, 78% saw a decline in MMR vaccination rates. But rates can vary substantially within a state.
The CDC has received at least 62 reports of measles cases this year that were infectious during air travel.
A measles case has been confirmed in Broward County involving a child.
The CDC is now struggling to keep up with requests for support from states with measles outbreaks.
Dr. Peter Marks said that the deaths of unvaccinated children is "just not acceptable."
Arkansas, Hawaii and Indiana have joined a list of two dozen states with confirmed measles cases.
The CDC is now backing an additional measles vaccine shot for some travelers within the United States in response to record outbreaks.
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. addressed health program cuts and the measles vaccine in his first network TV interview since joining the Trump administration.
A recent outbreak of measles is prompting questions about the life-threatening disease and how to prevent it. Here's what to know.
