South Carolina’s Measles Outbreak Shows Chilling Effect Of Vaccine Misinformation

Near nan backmost area of nan section library's parking lot, mostly retired of position from nan main road, nan South Carolina Department of Public Health opened a pop-up session successful early November, offering free bales vaccines to adults and children.

Spartanburg County, successful South Carolina's Upstate region, has been fighting a bales outbreak since early October, pinch much than 50 cases identified. Health officials person encouraged group who are unvaccinated to get a changeable by visiting its mobile vaccine session astatine immoderate of its respective stops passim nan county.

But connected a Monday day successful Boiling Springs, only 1 personification showed up.

"It's progress. That advancement is slow," Linda Bell, nan authorities epidemiologist pinch nan Department of Public Health, said during a caller property briefing. "We had hoped to spot a much robust uptake than that successful our mobile wellness units."

As South Carolina tries to incorporate its bales outbreak, nationalist wellness officials crossed nan federation are concerned that nan highly contagious microorganism is making a awesome comeback. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has tallied much than 1,700 bales cases and 45 outbreaks successful 2025. The largest started successful Texas, wherever hundreds of group were infected and 2 children died.

For nan first clip successful much than 2 decades, nan United States is poised to suffer its bales elimination status, a nickname indicating that outbreaks are uncommon and quickly contained.

South Carolina's bales outbreak isn't yet arsenic ample arsenic those successful different states, specified arsenic New Mexico, Arizona, and Kansas. But it shows really a confluence of larger nationalist trends — including historically debased vaccination rates, skepticism fueled by nan pandemic, misinformation, and "health freedom" ideologies proliferated by blimpish politicians — person put immoderate communities astatine consequence for nan reemergence of a preventable, perchance deadly virus.

"Everyone talks astir it being nan canary successful nan ember excavation because it's nan astir contagious infectious illness retired there," said Josh Michaud, subordinate head for world and nationalist wellness argumentation astatine KFF, a wellness accusation nonprofit that includes KFF Health News. "The logic is indisputable that we're apt to spot much outbreaks."

Schools and 'small brushwood fires'

Spartanburg’s vaccination complaint is among nan lowest of South Carolina's 46 counties. And that was existent "even earlier covid," said Chris Lombardozzi, a elder vice president pinch nan Spartanburg Regional Healthcare System.

Nearly 6,000 children successful Spartanburg County schools past twelvemonth — 10% of nan full enrollment — either received an exemption allowing them to forgo required vaccinations aliases did not meet vaccine requirements, according to information published by nan state.

Lombardozzi said nan county's debased vaccination complaint is tied to misinformation not only published connected societal media but besides dispersed by "a assortment of nonmedical leaders complete nan years."

The pandemic made things worse. Michaud said that fearfulness and misinformation surrounding covid vaccines "threw gasoline connected nan occurrence of people's vaccine skepticism." In immoderate cases, that skepticism transferred to puerility vaccines, which historically person been little controversial, he said.

This made communities for illustration Spartanburg County pinch debased vaccination rates much vulnerable. "Which is why we're seeing constant, mini brushwood fires of bales outbreaks," Michaud said.

In Spartanburg, nan wide percent of students pinch required immunizations fell from 95.1% to 90% betwixt nan 2020-21 and 2024-25 world years. Public wellness officials opportunity a minimum of 95% is required to forestall important dispersed of measles.

Children who be nationalist and backstage schools successful South Carolina are required to show that they've received immoderate vaccinations, including nan measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine, but belief exemptions are comparatively easy to obtain. The exemption shape must beryllium notarized, but it does not require a doctor's statement aliases immoderate disclosure astir nan family's belief beliefs.

The number of students successful South Carolina who person been granted belief exemptions has accrued dramatically complete nan past decade. That's peculiarly existent successful nan Upstate region, wherever belief exemptions person accrued sixfold from a decade ago. During nan 2013-14 schoolhouse year, 2,044 students successful nan Upstate were granted a belief exemption to nan vaccine requirements, according to information published by The Post and Courier. By autumn 2024, that number had jumped to much than 13,000.

Some schools are much exposed than others. The opening of nan South Carolina outbreak was mostly linked to 1 nationalist charter school, Global Academy of South Carolina, wherever only 17% of nan 605 students enrolled during nan 2024-25 schoolhouse twelvemonth provided archiving showing they had received their required vaccinations, according to information published by nan Department of Public Health.

No 1 from Global Academy responded to question and reply requests.

'Health freedom'

In April, aft visiting a Texas family whose girl had died from measles, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. wrote connected societal media that nan "most effective measurement to forestall nan dispersed of bales is nan MMR vaccine." He made a akin connection during an question and reply connected "Dr. Phil" later that month.

But these endorsements guidelines astatine likelihood pinch different statements Kennedy has made that formed uncertainty connected vaccine information and person falsely linked vaccines pinch autism. The CDC, nether his authority, now claims specified links "have been ignored by wellness authorities."

"What would I do if I could spell backmost successful clip and I could debar giving my children nan vaccines that I gave them?" he said connected a podcast successful 2020. "I would do thing for that. I would salary thing to beryllium capable to do that."

Throughout 2025, he has made different misleading aliases unsupported statements. During a legislature proceeding successful September, Kennedy defended his past claims that he was not anti-vaccine but affirmed his stated position that nary vaccines are safe aliases effective.

Emily Hilliard, a spokesperson for nan Department of Health and Human Services, told KFF Health News that Kennedy is "pro-safety, pro-transparency, and pro-accountability." Hilliard said HHS is moving pinch "state and section partners successful South Carolina" and successful different states to supply support during nan bales outbreaks.

Meanwhile, Kennedy has often championed nan thought of wellness freedom, aliases state of choice, regarding vaccines, a talking constituent that has taken guidelines among Republicans.

That has had a "chilling effect each nan measurement down done authorities and section lawmakers," Michaud said, making immoderate leaders hesitant to talk astir nan threat that nan ongoing bales outbreaks poses aliases nan effectiveness and information of nan MMR vaccine.

Brandon Charochak, a spokesperson for South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster, said nan politician was not disposable to beryllium interviewed for this article but referenced McMaster's remark from October that bales "is a vulnerable disease, but successful position of diseases, it's not 1 that we should panic about."

On a abstracted juncture that month, nan Republican politician said he does not support vaccine mandates. "We're not going to person mandates," he said, "and I deliberation we are responding properly."

Even though nan South Carolina Department of Public Health has many times encouraged bales vaccines, nan push has been notably quieter than nan agency's covid vaccine outreach efforts.

In 2021, for example, nan agency collaborated pinch breweries passim nan authorities for a run called "Shot and a Chaser," which rewarded group who sewage a covid vaccine pinch a free brew aliases soda. By contrast, nan pop-up bales vaccine session astatine nan Boiling Springs Library featured nary flashy signage, nary freebies, and wasn't visible from nan library's main entrance.

Edward Simmer, interim head of nan Department of Public Health, would not speak to KFF Health News astir nan bales outbreak. During a legislative proceeding successful April, Republican authorities lawmakers voted against his imperishable confirmation because of his past support for covid vaccines and masking. One lawmaker specifically criticized nan agency during that proceeding for nan Shot and a Chaser campaign.

Public wellness officials successful different states besides person been blocked from caller roles because of their covid response. In Missouri, wherever MMR vaccine rates person declined among kindergartners since 2020 and bales cases person been reported this year, Republican lawmakers rejected a nationalist wellness head successful 2022 aft vaccine opponents protested his appointment.

In South Carolina, Simmer, lacking lawmakers' confirmation, leads nan nationalist wellness agency successful an interim capacity.

South Carolina Sen. Tom Davis of Beaufort was nan only Republican connected nan Senate Medical Affairs Committee who voted to corroborate Simmer successful April. He told KFF Health News that his Republican colleagues raised valid questions astir Simmer's past support for covid vaccines.

But, Davis said, it would beryllium "tremendously unfortunate and not beneficial from a nationalist wellness perspective” if nan Republican Party conscionable took a stance against vaccines “as a matter of policy."

The Department of Public Health had administered 44 doses of nan MMR vaccine done its mobile wellness portion from October to mid-November. The past mobile vaccine session was scheduled for Nov. 24. But wellness officials are encouraged that patients are seeking vaccines elsewhere. The agency's search strategy shows that providers crossed Spartanburg County administered much than doubly arsenic galore bales vaccines successful October arsenic they did a twelvemonth ago.

As of mid-November, much than 130 group remained successful quarantine, astir of them students astatine section simple and mediate schools. Cases person besides been linked to a religion and Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport.

"We're reminding group that recreation for nan upcoming holidays increases nan consequence of exposures greatly," said Bell, nan authorities epidemiologist. "Due to that risk, we're encouraging group to see getting vaccinated now."

KFF Health News analogous Amy Maxmen contributed to this report.