Measles cases in South Carolina rise by 6 to 985

Feb 27 (Reuters) - Measles cases in South Carolina rose to 985 on Friday, state health data showed, including six additional infections since Tuesday.

• Officials have warned that the widening outbreak could last weeks or months amid lagging vaccine uptake.

• At least 61 people are in quarantine after being exposed to the virus, and two in isolation to keep them from spreading the disease.

• Of those infected, 919 were unvaccinated, 19 were partially vaccinated with one of the recommended two-dose measles-mumps-rubella vaccines, 26 were fully vaccinated and 21 had unknown vaccination status.

• South Carolina has reported a drop in measles cases over the past two weeks, an encouraging sign that the outbreak may be easing earlier than anticipated, a state health official said in a briefing on Wednesday.

• The outbreak, which began in October, has been centered in the northwest part of the state, which includes Greenville and Spartanburg, according to the South Carolina Department of Public Health.

• As of February 26, 1,136 confirmed measles cases were reported in the U.S. in 2026, according to CDC's latest data.