With U.S. measles cases above 4,400 this year, some health communication experts are urging public health agencies to change how they talk about the disease. Their argument, reported by STAT on Oct. 21, is that officials would earn more trust by openly acknowledging that most healthy children recover. The real risks, they say, can then be stated plainly without leaning on worst-case stories.
The debate comes as childhood vaccination coverage slips at the local level. A Johns Hopkins analysis published in JAMA in 2025 found MMR vaccination rates fell in 1,614 of 2,066 U.S. counties studied when comparing the years before and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Even small declines matter because measles spreads so easily.
