The World Health Organization (WHO) has reported that Canada now accounts for nearly half of all confirmed measles cases across the Americas in 2025, despite having officially eradicated the disease in 1998.
According to updated federal data, Canada has recorded 4,638 measles cases so far this year. The province of Ontario has been the hardest hit with 2,366 cases, while Alberta follows with 1,790, making it the worst-affected region on a per capita basis. British Columbia has reported 190 cases, while other provinces have only seen isolated infections.
The outbreak has been especially severe among Mennonite Christian communities, where vaccine hesitancy has long been prevalent. Health officials have traced the start of the epidemic to a Mennonite wedding in New Brunswick, which served as a major spreading event.
The United States, facing its worst measles epidemic in three decades, has confirmed 1,375 cases this year, according to the CDC.
The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), WHO’s regional office, noted that 71% of confirmed measles cases across the Americas are among unvaccinated individuals, with another 18% involving people with unknown vaccination status.
Canadian experts have warned that misinformation about vaccines has fueled the epidemic. Physicians have criticized US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has long spread anti-vaccine narratives, for worsening public distrust.
So far, the outbreak in Canada has led to one suspected measles-related death—a newborn baby born prematurely to an unvaccinated mother who also had other medical complications.
