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Harshawn Ratanpal

Measles outbreak in North Dakota up to 23 cases

A sign with a red stop sign and a phone number is posted.
A sign warning patients not to enter the building if they are experiencing measles symptoms or were exposed to the disease is posted at the entrance of the Sanford Moorhead Campus in Moorhead, Minn. on Monday, March 2, 2026. Two new measles cases have been identified in North Dakota counties that border Minnesota, bringing the cases in North Dakota so far this year to 23.
Tadeo Ruiz Sandoval | MPR News

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Two new cases of measles were confirmed in North Dakota Friday. That brings the total to 23 for the year so far. 

The two new cases are in Traill and Pembina counties, which both border Minnesota. Measles is a highly contagious and vaccine-preventable illness. Last year, North Dakota had 36 confirmed cases of measles. Before that, the last case was in 2011.

The state's vaccination rate for measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) has been declining, according to Molly Howell, the director of disease control and forensic pathology at the North Dakota Health and Human Services department. 

"For the most recent school year, we're actually at about 89 percent of kindergartners up to date for MMR ,” she said. “And although 89 percent sounds really high ... because measles is so contagious, you really need a 95 percent vaccination rate to prevent outbreaks in a community."

Howell said there are many reasons for vaccine hesitancy, including misinformation and a lack of trust in government and public health officials.

“Vaccines tend to be a victim of their own success, so when we don't see vaccine-preventable diseases anymore, we kind of forget about how severe they are, or that they're even there, and so then we kind of get relaxed about vaccinating,” Howell said. 

She added travel may be another reason for the state’s measles outbreak. There have been more than 200 cases of measles in the Canadian province of Manitoba in 2026. 

Manitoba borders Pembina County, which is where the vast majority of North Dakota’s measles cases have been.

The health department’s website lists areas in the state where there may have been public exposure to someone with measles.