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Canada has officially lost its measles elimination status, according to health officials on Monday, marking a significant setback due to a year-long increase in the disease primarily among unvaccinated populations.
Canada was declared free of measles in 1998, a success attributed to extensive efforts that maintained high vaccination rates for children. However, an outbreak that started in the eastern part of the nation in October 2024 has now expanded across the country, especially within certain Mennonite Christian groups who have declined vaccinations for their children based on religious beliefs.
Two infants, born to mothers who were not vaccinated, have succumbed to the virus.
Health Canada, a government body, announced in a statement that it has received official notification from the Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO) “that Canada no longer possesses measles elimination status.”
This development followed PAHO’s confirmation of “sustained transmission of the identical measles virus strain in Canada for more than a year.”
The organisation highlighted that although measles transmission “has recently diminished,” the outbreak has continued “mainly within communities with low vaccination rates.”
Experts noted that the proliferation of the virus in under-vaccinated groups served as a clear indication of systemic vulnerabilities. Paediatricians in Ontario emphasised that the outbreak is not limited to Mennonite communities.
Infections have also been reported among recent immigrants from developing countries who, for various reasons, have not kept up with vaccinations after moving to Canada, including an acute shortage of family doctors.
Measles is a highly contagious respiratory illness transmitted via droplets when an infected individual coughs, sneezes, or breathes. It can cause fever, respiratory issues, and a rash, and may also lead to severe complications such as pneumonia, brain inflammation, and potentially death.
In a regional update on Monday, PAHO confirmed that Canada was the only nation in the Americas to lose its elimination status, although others, including the United States, are experiencing active measles transmission.
In 2025, the United States faced its most severe measles outbreak in over three decades, with over 1,600 confirmed cases. Vaccine hesitancy has surged in the United States in recent years, fueled mainly by discredited claims associating vaccines with autism.
U.S. health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has significantly amplified those concerns by reiterating unfounded claims.
