Articles about Outbreak

• A measles outbreak in Washtenaw County, southeast Michigan, now includes 7 cases under investigation involving unvaccinated children and adults, with potential exposure at Trinity Health Ann Arbor Hospital's ER on March 21. • The latest case concerns a young child treated in Ypsilanti, raising concerns that ER visitors may have been exposed to the highly contagious virus. • All confirmed and suspected cases are among unvaccinated individuals, highlighting ongoing vaccination gaps amid the outbreak's growth reported on March 25.

Exclusive: Parental consents in Greater Manchester up 40% as demand surges in various parts of the countrySchool immunisation services and pharmacies are reporting surging demand for routine vaccinations after the Kent meningitis outbreak in which two teenagers died.Thousands of teenagers across England have booked or received jabs in past fortnight against the A, C, W and Y strains of meningitis (MenACWY), and diphtheria, polio and tetanus (Td/IPV). Continue reading...

East Kent hospitals NHS trust says it could have acted sooner to notify UKHSA after first reported case East Kent hospitals NHS trust missed an earlier opportunity to alert the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) of the meningitis outbreak in Kent, it has been reported.According to the BBC, the Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother hospital in Margate first reported a case to the UKHSA on the afternoon of Friday 13 March. Continue reading...

UKHSA says on Monday morning there has been no change since 20 cases were confirmed on SundayThere have been no new cases of meningitis linked to an outbreak in Kent reported, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has said.As of 12.30pm on Sunday, 20 cases had been confirmed, with a further nine under investigation. This was no change on the previous day, the UKHSA said in a statement on Monday morning. Continue reading...

Three cases previously confirmed reclassified by UK Health Security Agency after further testingThe number of confirmed meningitis cases linked to the Kent outbreak has fallen from 23 to 20.The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said on Sunday that three cases previously thought confirmed had been downgraded after further testing. Continue reading...

How infections linked to a nightclub escalated into a public health incident requiring a national response is a puzzle experts are still grappling withTyra Skinner had already been violently sick three times when doctors at Kent’s William Harvey hospital realised something was badly wrong. The 20-year-old was rushed into critical care, racked with a pounding headache, a stiff neck and excruciating pain – the hallmark symptoms of meningitis, the disease that had already claimed two young lives in Kent.“She could hardly move, she was in a foetal position. She was so cramped up and sore,” her father, Dale Skinner, 42, told the Guardian. “It was horrendous, to be honest, to see her so helpless and in so much pain.” Continue reading...

Scientific advisory committee to examine impact of offering routine MenB jabs to wider range of peopleThe Kent meningitis outbreak: what is happening and why?Experts are considering expanding the meningitis B vaccination eligibility in response to the fatal outbreak of the disease in Kent.The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation’s review comes after the health secretary, Wes Streeting, asked it to to “re-examine eligibility for meningitis vaccines” for a wider range of people than those who currently qualify. Continue reading...

Spread appears to have slowed, with just two new cases reported in past day bringing total to 29The Kent meningitis outbreak may have reached its peak, after only two new cases were reported by officials on Friday.The UK Health and Security Agency said that as of 12.30pm on Thursday, there were 18 confirmed and 11 probable cases of meningitis linked to the Kent outbreak, taking the total number of people with the disease to 29. Of the confirmed cases, 13 were meningitis B. Continue reading...

What causes meningitis, what the public health response has been and how the situation differs from Covid The deadly outbreak of meningitis in Kent has fuelled concerns about how far the disease will spread and seen the return of people wearing masks and queueing for vaccines. The scenes are reminiscent of the Covid crisis, but meningitis is very different. Here we look at how the outbreak unfolded. Continue reading...

• State officials are warning that spring break 2026 travel season could facilitate the spread of measles across the United States as travelers move between regions with varying vaccination rates. • Health authorities are concerned about potential measles transmission during the high-travel period, with implications for public health preparedness and disease surveillance. • The warning underscores ongoing challenges in maintaining herd immunity and controlling vaccine-preventable diseases during major travel seasons.

Hundreds of students at University of Kent take up offer of meningitis B vaccination amid ‘very unusual outbreak’ The number of cases of meningitis linked to an outbreak in Kent has risen to 27, up from 20, the UK Health Security Agency has said.Prof Robin May, the chief scientific officer at the UKHSA, said it was a “very unusual outbreak”. Continue reading...

In today’s newsletter: After a spate of infections linked to a nightclub in Kent, some parents and experts are questioning the UK’s vaccination regime It is every parent’s worst nightmare. University students enjoying themselves at a nightclub, only to fall ill a few days later with a potentially deadly illness. So far, two young people have died and more are seriously unwell in hospital after a meningitis outbreak in Kent, which appears to have started at Club Chemistry in Canterbury in early March. Health authorities have launched a major response: 30,000 people have been given antibiotics and up to 5,000 University of Kent students will receive a meningitis B vaccine, the strain that is believed to be behind the outbreak.The health secretary, Wes Streeting, has urged calm, explaining that the risk of transmission is low, urging students to keep going to school and insisting that people do not need to seek private vaccinations. But that has not stopped a rush for jabs, causing a national shortage. The high street pharmacies Boots and Superdrug say they have seen a major spike in bookings, with some locations running out of stock.Middle East | Israel struck Iran’s giant South Pars gasfield on Wednesday, marking a major escalation of the war, hours after Israeli forces killed the regime’s intelligence minister and launched some of the most intense airstrikes in Beirut for decades.Reform UK | Nigel Farage called for the release of Sean “Diddy” Combs and commended the efforts to free a former Honduran president jailed in the US for drug trafficking. The remarks were made on the personalised video platform Cameo.Assisted dying | Senior ministers believe Keir Starmer will not intervene to give the assisted dying bill further time in parliament as he is wary of opening up new divisions among Labour MPs.Media | The former Google executive Matt Brittin is expected to be named as the BBC’s next director general within days, with the corporation’s board meeting this week for a final discussion about the appointment.Green party | A government led by the Green party would not set targets for GDP growth but would instead focus on people’s mental health, social cohesion and community welfare, Zack Polanski has said in a major speech to set out his plans for the economy. Continue reading...

There is growing confidence that the 20 people diagnosed with the illness have not infected anyone outside the areaHealth officials increasingly believe they have contained the fatal outbreak of meningitis in Kent, with no cases emerging that are not linked to the original cluster of 20.In another boost to efforts to contain the infection, the bug that caused it has been identified as a known strain of meningitis B, the Guardian understands. Continue reading...

• The FDA linked Raw Farm's raw cheddar cheese to seven E. coli O157:H7 cases across multiple states, a strain causing severe kidney issues, hospitalization, or death. • Producer declined recall of two products despite Sunday's FDA alert on March 16. • Outbreak underscores risks of raw milk products, prompting public warnings to avoid consumption.

The cases recorded so far have all been linked to a nightclub popular with students in Canterbury on 5-7 MarchTwo young people have died in an outbreak of meningitis in Kent as private supplies of vaccines run out. Here’s what we know about how the disease spread and what the authorities did to tackle it. Continue reading...

UKHSA says strain involved in outbreak that has killed two people is one that most people are not vaccinated againstGovernment scientists have identified the type of meningitis behind a fatal outbreak in Kent as a strain that most people have not be vaccinated against.Gayatri Amirthalingam, the deputy director of the immunisation and vaccine preventable diseases at the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), said tests showed it was strain B of the virus. Continue reading...

Cheddar cheese from California-based Raw Farm identified as ‘likely source’ of infections across multiple statesCheese from the country’s largest raw milk distributor have been linked to a multistate E coli outbreak.Raw cheddar cheese from the California-based company Raw Farm has been identified as the “likely source” of several E coli O157:H7 infections in California, Florida and Texas, according to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), PBS News reported, though no Raw Farm products have tested positive for E coli. Continue reading...

A year 13 pupil and a University of Kent student have died after contracting the disease, while 11 people remain seriously ill in hospital A school pupil has been confirmed as the second person to have died after an outbreak of meningitis in Kent, an MP has said.Over the weekend it was reported that a University of Kent student was one of two people to have died after contracting the disease, while 11 more people were seriously ill in hospital. Continue reading...

Students in Canterbury given antibiotics for fast-acting and invasive meningococcal disease, says UKHSATwo people have died and 11 are reportedly seriously ill in hospital after an outbreak of a rare form of invasive meningitis at the University of Kent.The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said it had provided antibiotics to students in the Canterbury area after it detected 13 cases of invasive meningococcal disease, a combination of meningitis and septicaemia. Continue reading...

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported 1,362 confirmed measles cases nationwide in 2026, with 94% linked to ongoing outbreaks. South Carolina's outbreak, which began in October 2025, has decelerated to approximately 10 cases per week after peaking at 200 weekly cases in mid-January, bringing the state total to 996 cases as of March 13. Utah's outbreak, originating in June 2025, has accelerated to 405 cases as of March 10, representing a 47-case increase in one week. Both states currently host the largest active measles outbreaks in the United States.

The measles outbreak in Colorado tied to two Broomfield schools has grown to 10 cases, including two new confirmed infections and one suspected as of March 12. Public health teams are tracing exposures and urging quarantines. This cluster underscores vulnerabilities in school vaccination coverage amid rising national measles alerts. Officials plan expanded testing and contact tracing to halt further spread.

The measles outbreak linked to two schools in Broomfield, Colorado, has reached up to 10 cases, including two new confirmed infections and one suspected case reported on March 12. Public health officials are investigating exposures and urging vaccinations in the affected communities. This cluster highlights ongoing risks in under-vaccinated school groups amid national resurgence. Contact tracing and quarantine measures are ongoing to contain spread.

A major measles outbreak in South Carolina is showing signs of slowing, with cases nearing 1,000 total and new infections dropping to about 10 per week from a peak of 200 weekly in mid-January. State health officials report a consistent downward trend over several weeks amid vaccination efforts. The decline matters as it reduces strain on public health resources in a state hit hardest by the outbreak. Monitoring continues to prevent resurgence through summer.

A major measles outbreak in South Carolina is slowing, with nearly 1,000 total cases reported and new infections dropping to about 10 per week from a peak of 200 in mid-January. Health officials note a consistent downward trend over several weeks amid vaccination efforts. The decline matters as it signals potential containment in the largest U.S. outbreak this year, reducing risks to unvaccinated communities. Monitoring continues to prevent resurgence as cases stabilize.

A measles outbreak linked to two schools in Broomfield, Colorado has grown to as many as 10 confirmed and suspected cases, with two new confirmed infections and one suspected infection reported on March 12, 2026. The outbreak represents an emerging public health concern in the state as measles continues to spread in pockets across the United States. Health officials are working to identify additional exposures and contain further transmission in the affected school communities.