The claim is false because COVID-19 lockdowns contributed to missed routine vaccinations, but current evidence identifies declining vaccination coverage and vaccine hesitancy, especially in under-vaccinated communities, as the main reasons measles outbreaks are occurring.
False
The reason we're having a Measles outbreak is because of the COVID lockdowns.
What's Behind the Global Resurgence of Measles? - Council on Foreign Relations
Source: cfr.org
At a glance
Verified August 2, 2026Key Evidence
The Council on Foreign Relations and History of Vaccines identify pandemic disruptions as factors that caused missed vaccinations.
However, UCSF, KFF, the University of Chicago, and Harvard Health link active outbreaks primarily to inadequate vaccination coverage and the highly contagious nature of measles.
Several sources also identify specific under-vaccinated or vaccine-hesitant communities as outbreak settings.
The reporting
What the Evidence Shows
The sources support a more nuanced explanation than attributing the outbreak solely to lockdowns.
• Lockdowns were a contributing factor. The Council on Foreign Relations reports that pandemic restrictions and strained health-care systems caused some children to miss scheduled measles vaccinations. History of Vaccines similarly identifies disruption of childhood immunization programs as one factor behind the global resurgence.
• The immediate condition enabling outbreaks is insufficient vaccination coverage. University of Chicago, UCSF, KFF, and Harvard Health sources emphasize that measles spreads rapidly when communities contain enough unvaccinated or nonimmune people. UCSF specifically attributes current spread largely to declining vaccination rates in certain communities, while KFF reports that U.S. MMR vaccination rates have declined since 2010.
• Community-level vaccine hesitancy matters. The University of Chicago source describes sustained spread in a relatively closed community with vaccination rates below the level needed to prevent transmission. The July 2026 Slate result likewise identifies outbreaks in communities where vaccine hesitancy is common.
Therefore, lockdown-related interruptions likely increased the number of susceptible children, but they do not by themselves explain the present outbreaks. The evidence points to a combination of missed vaccinations, longer-term declines in coverage, vaccine hesitancy, and transmission in under-immunized communities.
Primary trail
Verified Sources10
Open source