(SPARTANBURG COUNTY, S.C.) — At least 88 new measles cases in South Carolina have been confirmed amid the state’s outbreak, bringing the total number of infections to 646, state health officials said Tuesday.
The majority of cases have been found in the Upstate region and around Spartanburg County, which sits on the border with North Carolina.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
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(SPARTANBURG COUNTY, S.C.) — At least 88 new measles cases in South Carolina have been confirmed amid the state’s outbreak, bringing the total number of infections to 646, state health officials said Tuesday.
The majority of cases have been found in the Upstate region and around Spartanburg County, which sits on the border with North Carolina.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
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(ATLANTA) — Flu activity continues to remain elevated across the U.S., according to newly released data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The CDC estimates there have been at least 18 million illnesses, 230,000 hospitalizations and 9,300 deaths from flu so far this season.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
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(NEW YORK) — As measles continues to spread across the U.S., with outbreaks popping up around the country, public health experts have been stressing the importance of getting vaccinated to stop the spread of disease.
This has involved local doctors and health department workers going into outbreak areas to offer the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine.
The MMR vaccine is typically a two-dose series given first at 12-15 months old and again at 4-6 years of age. An extra dose can be given as early 6 months old in high-risk circumstances, including during a measles outbreak.
Health experts working in and near measles outbreaks told ABC News that vaccine acceptance has been mixed among these communities, with some people begging to get their kids vaccinated early, while others still refuse an immunization.
“[Measles] can spread so quickly amongst that unvaccinated population,” Dr. Christopher Lombardozzi, chief medical officer at Spartanburg Regional Healthcare System, told ABC News. “And if the number of people who remain unvaccinated stays large, then we could have a real problem, not just this year, but in years to come.”
Vaccine hesitancy in outbreak areas
The upstate region of South Carolina is experiencing a surge in measles cases amid the ongoing outbreak.
The South Carolina Department of Public Health (DPH) reported 223 new cases over the last week, bringing the total number of cases in the outbreak to 434 since October, with over 400 people currently in quarantine due to exposure. Spartanburg County, which borders North Carolina, is currently the epicenter of the outbreak.
A spokesperson for Spartanburg Regional Healthcare System told ABC News that, as of Jan. 9, there have been 77 confirmed measles cases across the system since the outbreak began.
Lombardozzi said the health care system has seen some increased vaccine uptake, but not as much as they hoped for.
“We certainly have had some more uptake of vaccine in the last six months or so, since the outbreak started here in South Carolina, and I’m happy for that,” Lombardozzi said. “I would love to see a higher uptake. There is still quite a bit of vaccine hesitancy around here, and I think it’s unwarranted.”
Lombardozzi added that addressing vaccine hesitancy takes time and support.
“We try to support people, meet them where they are, and hopefully they will change their mind if they’ve been vaccine hesitant for a while,” he said.
Lombardozzi worries that without increasing immunizations, the negative effects could ripple for years.
In a press conference on Wednesday, Dr. Linda Bell, state epidemiologist and health program branch director for the South Carolina DPH, said the lack of vaccine acceptance amid the growing outbreak has been “disappointing.”
Bell said vaccines could have helped prevent a majority of cases, adding, “We have an opportunity to prevent further cases, if people can adopt these available tools and help us stop this outbreak sooner rather than later.”
As of Tuesday, another ongoing outbreak in Utah surpassed 200 measles cases since it began in June of last year. The southwest region of Utah has reported 147 of those cases, which equates to a rate of 25.8 cases per 100,000 people in that region.
David Heaton, public information officer at the Southwest Utah Department of Public Health, told ABC News that cases in southwest Utah and further north have been linked to the same measles virus that spread in Texas and New Mexico last year.
Heaton worries that measles will soon be declared endemic again, ending the decades-long elimination status in the U.S.
“That’s kind of a discouraging threshold that we’re getting closer to. I think [the loss of elimination status] could be recovered, but it could take a couple of years at least,” Heaton said.
In the Southwest region, vaccine acceptance has been highest among people who were on the fence or those who accidentally missed vaccines, but those with strong beliefs against vaccines have been “fairly immovable,” Heaton added.
“We’re just seeing the attitude of, ‘I choose not to get vaccinated. I don’t agree with vaccinations, and I’m not going to do it. I don’t feel the risk is high enough to get the vaccine,'” he said.
Some success in vaccine uptake
But there have been examples of success. Last year, during a large outbreak from February to September, the New Mexico Department of Health (NMDOH) reported that MMR doses administered were nearly 50% higher than the year prior by October.
The largest gains were due to adult vaccination that increased by about 230% in October 2025 compared to October 2024. Children receiving the MMR shot only increased by about 10% compared to that time the previous year.
Andrea Romero, immunization program section manager at NMDOH, told ABC News communication was key during the outbreak. Romero said most of the adults who got vaccinated did so because they were unsure of their vaccination status and felt a strong sense of duty to get the shot, not just to protect themselves but to protect their community.
“When they know that they’re making a difference, it matters,” Romero said. “Every time I take that opportunity [to say], ‘Thank you for being a great community and your response, caring about yourself, your family, your neighbor,’ but it means a lot because it’s their efforts. It was their response that made the difference.”
NMDOH data shared with ABC News shows that 384 children with a vaccine exemption on file received at least one MMR shot between Jan. 13, 2025 and Jan. 13, 2026. This suggests parents of these children changed their minds about the vaccine around the time of New Mexico’s measles outbreak, according to health department officials.
During that same timeframe, at least one MMR dose was the only immunization on record for 189 children in the state, the data shows.
Fears of further measles spread
Doctors near outbreak regions are also experiencing the effects of fears and questions about measles and vaccination from their community.
Dr. Deborah Greenhouse, a spokesperson for the American Academy of Pediatrics and pediatrician in South Carolina, told ABC News that her community hasn’t had a measles case yet, but parents and healthcare providers are increasingly concerned.
“As we all know, and as my patients know, measles virus does not respect county borders, so, as the numbers continue to rise, the likelihood that we start seeing cases here in the midlands of South Carolina increases dramatically,” Greenhouse said.
On Tuesday, health officials announced there was a measles exposure on Jan. 2 in the midlands region at the South Carolina State Museum in Columbia.
“If more families decline the vaccines, our vaccination rates drop and we become an open target, essentially a sitting duck for an outbreak, much like the Spartanburg area,” Greenhouse said.
In her experience, building a foundation of trust has been essential for vaccine acceptance.
“They know me, they trust me,” Greenhouse said. “They know that as a pediatrician, I have no interest here other than protecting the best interests of their children and their family.”
She went on, “Families that I’ve known for years, who I have a very strong relationship with, are coming in and asking for every vaccine that they can get, and asking to get the measles, mumps, rubella vaccine early, because they’re very concerned about their children being exposed to measles and not being protected.”
Greenhouse said trying to build trust among families has been particularly challenging amid changing guidance from federal health agencies and widespread misinformation.
“Unfortunately, some of the awful sources right now are people that you used to think you could trust and, as a new parent, I totally understand why it would be incredibly difficult to be able to figure out right now,” Greenhouse said.
Despite changing guidance and misinformation, doctors say the science hasn’t changed, and vaccines remain safe and effective.
“Amongst the medical community, you’re not going to get much disagreement that the vaccines are safe and that they’re effective,” Lombardozzi said. “The message is, go get your kids their shots if it’s time to get their shots. We certainly encourage folks to go talk to your pediatrician, go talk to your doctor.”
Jade A. Cobern, MD, MPH, is a practicing physician, board-certified in pediatrics and general preventive medicine, and is a medical fellow of the ABC News Medical Unit.
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(SPARTANBURG COUNTY, S.C.) — At least 99 new measles cases are being reported in South Carolina amid the state’s outbreak.
This brings the total number of cases in the state to 310. There are currently 200 people in quarantine, according to health officials.
The outbreak has been ongoing as state health officials continue to push for vaccinations. The majority of cases are located around Spartanburg County.
“The number of those in quarantine does not reflect the number actually exposed,” Dr. Linda Bell, the state epidemiologist, said in a press releases. “An increasing number of public exposure sites are being identified with likely hundreds more people exposed who are not aware they should be in quarantine if they are not immune to measles. Previous measles transmission studies have shown that one measles case can result in up to 20 new infections among unvaccinated contacts.”
South Carolina’s department of public health said it sent a statewide health alert on Jan. 7, “advising health care providers and facilities of the importance of heightened awareness for measles and recommended measures for the use of masks and rapid isolation of suspect measles cases to protect people in health care settings from exposures.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention currently recommends that people receive two doses of the MMR vaccine, the first at ages 12 to 15 months and the second between 4 and 6 years old. One dose is 93% effective, and two doses are 97% effective against measles, the CDC says.
However, CDC data shows vaccination rates have been lagging in recent years. During the 2024-2025 school year, 92.5% of kindergartners received the MMR vaccine, according to data. This is lower than the 92.7% seen the previous school year and the 95.2% seen in the 2019-2020 school year, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.
ABC News’ Mary Kekatos contributed reporting.
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(ATLANTA) — Flu activity continues to remain elevated throughout the United States, according to newly released data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The CDC on Friday estimated there have been at least 15 million illnesses, 180,000 hospitalizations and 7,400 deaths from flu so far this season.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
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(WASHINGTON) — Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced new federal dietary guidelines on Wednesday, encouraging Americans to limit highly processed food and reduce refined carbohydrates.
The guidelines also encourage Americans to eat whole foods like fruits and vegetables, incorporate healthy fats, prioritize protein-rich meals including red meat, and consume full-fat dairy with no added sugars.
The new Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which are updated every five years, comes as Kennedy has made nutrition policy a cornerstone of his Make America Healthy Again agenda.
The administration also released an image of an updated food pyramid to match the guidelines.
“These new guidelines will revolutionize our nation’s food culture and make America healthier again,” Kennedy said during a press conference at the White House alongside Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins and other health officials.
For the first time, the Dietary Guidelines explicitly warned Americans against certain highly processed foods and suggests avoiding “packaged, prepared, ready-to-eat, or other foods that are salty or sweet” and “sugar-sweetened beverages, such as soda, fruit drinks, and energy drinks.”
Kennedy has previously called for restrictions on ultra-processed foods as part of an initiative to address the high rates of chronic disease in the U.S.
The health secretary also said the updated guidelines will place an emphasis on incorporating saturated fats into diets.
“We are ending the war on saturated fats,” Kennedy said. “My message is clear. Eat real food, nothing matters more for health care outcomes, economic productivity, military readiness and physical stability.”
The guidelines states that when adding fats to meals, “prioritize oils with essential fatty acids, such as olive oil. Other options can include butter or beef tallow,” the latter which has been touted by Kennedy in the past.
Health experts have previously stated that there are benefits of good fats, such as those found in some nuts and vegetables, while warning that too much saturated fats are a health risk.
The American Heart Association warns that saturated fats can increase the risk of high cholesterol, which can increase the risk of heart disease.
Additionally, the guidelines state that “no amount of added sugars or non-nutritive sweeteners” is part of a healthy diet and calls on parents to completely avoid added sugar and artificial sweeteners for children aged four and under.
The guidelines also say Americans should “limit alcoholic beverages.” Previously, guidelines recommended adults aged 21 and older should stick to two drinks or fewer per day for men and one drink or less per day for women.
Dr. Mehmet Oz, administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, said during the press conference that there was “never good data” to support the previously recommended level of alcohol consumption.
In addition, guidelines call for “high-quality, nutrient-dense” proteins with every meal such as red meat, poultry, seafood and eggs. For those who prefer plant-based options, this includes beans, peas, lentils, legumes, nuts, seeds and soy.
A factsheet claimed that previous federal dietary guidelines have “demonized” protein in favor of carbohydrates.
“Protein was never demonized in U.S. dietary guidelines. As it is, Americans are consuming protein in amounts well above the amount that is necessary to sustain health and development,” Marie-Pierre St-Onge, a professor at Columbia University Nutrition, told ABC News.
The guidelines, issued by HHS and the Department of Agriculture, provide Americans with dietary advice to promote health and prevent disease.
Although the federal government has provided such advice to Americans for at least a century, the guidelines in their current form have existed since 1980.
Previous releases include the introduction of the food pyramid in 1992 and its replacement, MyPlate, in 2011.
The guidelines are also the foundation for all federal food programs, such as school lunches; the Women, Infants and Children program; and Head Start, as well as meals for active-duty service members and veterans who rely on Veterans Affairs hospitals.
The guidelines were lauded by medical groups such as the American Medical Association (AMA) and the American Heart Association (AHA).
“The American Medical Association applauds the Administration’s new Dietary Guidelines for spotlighting the highly processed foods, sugar-sweetened beverages, and excess sodium that fuel heart disease, diabetes, obesity, and other chronic illnesses,” Dr. Bobby Mukkamala, AMA’s president, said in a statement. “The Guidelines affirm that food is medicine and offer clear direction patients and physicians can use to improve health.”
The AHA said in a statement that it welcomes the new dietary guidelines and its emphasis on fruits and vegetables while limiting highly processed foods and added sugars.
However, regarding protein, the AHA said it encourages prioritizing plant-based proteins, seafood and lean meats and to limit high-fat animal products including red meat, butter, lard and tallow, which are linked to increased cardiovascular risk.”
ABC News’ Nicholas Kerr and Liz Neporent contributed to this report.
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(WASHINGTON) — The Trump administration announced new federal dietary guidelines on Wednesday, encouraging Americans to limit highly processed foods and to reduce refined carbohydrates.
The guidelines also recommend eating whole foods like fruits and vegetables, incorporating healthy fats, prioritizing protein-rich meals and consuming full-fat dairy with no added sugars.
The new Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which are updated every five years, come as Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has made nutrition policy a cornerstone of his Make America Healthy Again agenda.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
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(NEW YORK) — Earlier this week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention abruptly changed the childhood immunization schedule, reducing the number of recommended shots for all children from 18 down to only 11.
According to the new schedule, shots will now be categorized in three groups: those recommended for all children, those recommended for only certain high-risk children and others left up to shared clinical decision making, meaning only given if recommended by an individual’s doctor or based on parental preference.
Some pediatricians told ABC News that this decision will only cause more confusion and fuel a growing trend of vaccine skepticism and refusal amid a rise in some vaccine-preventable illnesses around the U.S.
Dr. Anita Henderson, a pediatrician at the Pediatric Clinic in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, told ABC News that removing seven shots from the schedule recommended for all kids is “reckless” and confusing.
This isn’t the first change to vaccine recommendations that has been made in the past year by the Department of Health and Human Services under Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
In 2025, guidance for vaccinating healthy children against COVID-19 was reversed and the universal birth dose of the hepatitis B vaccine was eliminated. Kennedy also fired all 17 members of the CDC’s vaccine advisory panel and handpicked their replacements, and has been criticized.
“Pediatricians are already facing families who are confused about vaccine recommendations. This confusion is intentional and meant to weaken vaccination rates in the US and sow seeds of doubt and division,” Henderson said.
Under the updated schedule, only seven vaccines are recommended based on shared clinical decision making between a doctor and parent and are no longer universally recommended for all children.
These include shots that protect against influenza, COVID-19, rotavirus and some types of bacterial meningitis and viral hepatitis. All of these vaccine-preventable illnesses can lead to severe infections or death and have limited to no treatment options.
“These latest changes will undoubtedly shake confidence in vaccines even further, to the detriment of the children we care for,” Dr. Molly O’Shea, a practicing pediatrician and spokesperson for the American Academy of Pediatrics, told ABC News.
O’Shea said that, in her practice, she’s had to navigate more vaccine skepticism and refusal over the past year, but wants parents to know that the science on effectiveness and safety hasn’t shifted “even though the recommended vaccine schedule has shifted.”
She continued, “The reason for that shift has nothing to do with whether or not vaccines are safe and effective and all children benefit from avoiding illness and being healthy, to attend school and be a part of the community.”
To address growing concerns about vaccines, O’Shea said the pediatric offices she works in have had to change their workflow to allow more time for discussions about vaccines and to address vaccine misinformation.
While happy to have these conversations with families, O’Shea said reserving time for these additional visits for vaccine counseling becomes more difficult during flu season, when more kids need to be seen due to illnesses.
She added that the offices have already had to scale back ordering some vaccines in bulk because uptake has decreased for some shots.
Henderson and O’Shea both reaffirmed that vaccines are safe — far safer than the dangerous illnesses they prevent.
“Over the last 30 years, I have hospitalized hundreds of children with complications from influenza, RSV, rotavirus and other vaccine-preventable diseases that have now been removed from the CDC schedule,” Henderson said. “I have never hospitalized a child from a vaccine reaction. Vaccines are safe and effective and protect our most vulnerable patients … our babies and children.”
“Vaccines are the safest way for a child’s immune system to become familiar with any of these illnesses, way safer than the disease itself,” O’Shea added.
Doctors are also concerned that the vaccination schedule updates may have secondary impacts, including how often children and families see their pediatrician.
Pediatric wellness checks include recommended vaccines, particularly in young childhood, but pediatricians say that there’s more to those visits than shots alone. Skipping visits could miss critical windows of a child’s growth, development, and recommended screenings.
“Absent vaccine, kids are really going to miss out on important other screening aspects of the wellness visits if their parents are opting out,” O’Shea said.
Pediatricians continue to urge parents to talk to their own child’s doctor and to trust their medical guidance.
“Your pediatrician really is your trusted source of information, and we have nothing to gain in the way things are going here,” O’Shea said.
“Vaccines are certainly not a way in which we make any money,” she went on. “But [a] pediatrician’s goal is to partner with parents to make the right decision for your child, and so, bringing your concerns and questions to your pediatrician is the best way to get quality information.”
Amid the shrinking childhood vaccine schedule, many vaccine-preventable illnesses remain common in the U.S. and other diseases, such as measles and whooping cough, are increasing.
Last year, the U.S. saw more measles cases than at any other time in the last 30 years and three people died from the disease. Two children died from whooping cough during an outbreak in Louisiana and more kids died from influenza than in any other year on record since it became a reportable illness in 2004.
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(NEW YORK) — Flu activity could continue to increase in the U.S. over the next few weeks, according to a top flu epidemiologist at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“There’s a lot of influenza out there right now,” Dr. Carrie Reed, chief of the epidemiology and prevention branch of the CDC’s influenza division, told ABC News.
“We often see activity continue into the spring … I think the reality is that it’s going to continue to be elevated for a little bit longer,” she continued.
The CDC’s latest estimates indicate that there have been at least 11 million illnesses, 120,000 hospitalizations and 5,000 deaths from flu so far this season.
“That’s likely a low estimate based on the data that we’re seeing so far,” Reed said, adding that the federal health agency typically publishes the lower range of the estimates.
A new variant that first emerged in the summer, known as subclade K, has become the dominant strain, CDC data shows. Subclade K is a variant of the H3N2 virus, which is itself a subtype of influenza A.
Of the 994 flu samples tested since Sept. 30, nearly all were influenza A. Of those samples that underwent further testing roughly 90% were H3N2, CDC data shows.
“Subclade K has acquired some mutations in the virus that make it a little bit different than what’s in the vaccine and what was circulating over the last couple years,” Reed said.
Public health experts currently recommend that everyone ages 6 months and older, with rare exceptions, get an annual flu vaccine.
Although the current flu vaccine is not a perfect match to subclade K, it is still expected to offer some protection against the new variant and lower the risk of serious disease, hospitalization and death.
Reed added that the new variant does not appear to be driving more severe illness yet.
“There are still benefits to vaccine, even if the virus [has] somewhat drifted from what’s in the vaccine,” she said. “We haven’t seen increases in hospitalization and mortality yet in the ways that we have with [doctors’ visits], although that’s something that we continue to watch for as well.”
For those who have gotten sick, there are medicines available, known as antivirals, that may help reduce the severity and length of illness.
Reed said for those who contract the flu and have a higher risk of severe disease, they should seek care early and speak with their doctor about receiving a prescription for flu antivirals.
She explained that flu antivirals have been found to reduce the duration of illness as well as lower the risk for severe disease, hospitalization and death.
Health officials have stressed that it is not too late for people get a flu shot if they haven’t received one yet.
“There’s still time to get a flu vaccine,” Reed said. “It does take a couple weeks for your immune response to pick up after vaccination, but that does mean there’s many more weeks of flu activity to benefit from the protection of an influenza vaccine.”
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