An infant in Wisconsin has died from measles, state health officials said Thursday, marking the first measles death in the state since 1990. The coroner listed measles as the immediate cause of death, and officials say the case is connected to an ongoing outbreak that has swept through southwestern Wisconsin for months.
According to ABC News, the state health department confirmed the death Thursday, calling it the first of its kind in the state in 36 years. Wisconsin Public Radio reports that officials are withholding further details about the child, including identifying information, to protect the privacy of the family.
Wisconsin Department of Health Services Secretary Kirsten Johnson said any child death is a tragedy, particularly when it is tied to a vaccine-preventable disease, according to facts drawn from the seed coverage reported by ABC7 Chicago. Johnson said her “heart is broken for the family,” the same report notes, and added that measles can cause serious illness and death. She urged Wisconsinites to evaluate their own risk and take steps to protect themselves and their families.
Outbreak Has Spread Across 13 Counties
As of November 3, the Wisconsin Department of Health Services had reported 431 measles cases across 13 counties so far in 2026, according to WisPolitics. That is the state's highest measles total in more than 35 years. The same report states that nine people have required hospitalization for severe symptoms during the outbreak.
The vast majority of cases have been linked to spread among residents of Grant, Iowa, Lafayette and Vernon counties, the Wisconsin Public Radio report notes. Separately, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported that Chippewa County had logged 44 cases as of November 3, with cases there initially tied to out-of-state travel before health officials came to believe the virus was spreading locally. Medical Daily reported that the broader southwest outbreak grew from 336 to 362 confirmed cases between October 30 and November 3.
Nearly All Cases Involve Unvaccinated People
Over 99 percent of Wisconsin's measles cases have been in people who are unvaccinated, per the Wisconsin Public Radio report. State health officials said two doses of the MMR vaccine are approximately 97 percent effective at preventing measles, and Wisconsin residents are being urged to get vaccinated against measles, mumps and rubella.
The infant's death adds to a small but growing national tally. ABC News reports that the death brings the total number of measles deaths reported by state health departments across the country to eight — six in Pennsylvania, one in New York, and now one in Wisconsin. New York's death involved a child in Lewis County and was described by officials as the state's first known measles-associated death in more than 30 years, with New York recording 178 cases statewide as of October 24, including eight in New York City.
Wisconsin officials have not released additional information about the infant, citing the family's privacy, and no further details — including the exact date of death or the child's vaccination history — have been disclosed. Health officials continue to monitor the outbreak as case counts climb across the southwestern part of the state.
