What my colleagues and I will look for as we assess U.S. measles elimination status

By Noel T. BrewerAug. 6, 2026

Brewer chairs the U.S. committee that reviews the annual CDC measles reports to verify whether the U.S. maintains or loses measles elimination status.

Elimination of measles in the United States in 2000 was a landmark public health achievement. Twenty-five years later, the country has already reported more cases this year than it did in all of 2025, a stark reminder that public health victories can be reversed.

In mid-August, colleagues and I will review the evidence and decide whether the U.S. has maintained measles elimination. In many ways, our roles bookend that history. Several of these colleagues helped lead the national effort that ended endemic measles transmission in 2000. And I now chair the committee that must determine whether that hard‑won status still holds — or whether the country is on the verge of losing it.

To independently certify the CDC’s annual report on measles elimination, the U.S. maintains the United States of America National Verification Committee for the Elimination of Measles, Rubella, and Congenital Rubella Syndrome. (Yes, it’s a mouthful.) After our committee’s review, we will forward the report and our expert opinion to the Regional Verification Commission of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO). Then, in November, this PAHO committee will announce whether the U.S. has maintained measles elimination.