A traveler infected with measles flew into Miami. What are the next steps?

Miami Herald

16-06-2025

Miami has detected another case of measles, one of the most contagious diseases in the world, as the country nears record levels of infection.
Health officials have confirmed that a person infected with measles arrived in Miami earlier in June from Boston. The travelers flew into Miami International Airport on JetBlue flight 639, according to the Boston Public Health Commission.
The flight, which departed from Boston Logan International Airport at 9:12 p.m. June 8, arrived in Miami at 1:14 a.m. June 9, flight tracking website data shows. Boston health officials said they're working with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to identify and notify passengers who may have been exposed.
Measles is a highly contagious disease that can spread through coughing, sneezing and by touching infected surfaces. It produces a rash over the skin and flu-like symptoms. While most people can recover at home, the disease can lead to serious and sometimes deadly complications, including pneumonia and brain swelling.
The disease was eliminated from the U.S. in 2000 following an effective vaccination program, with the country seeing sporadic travel-related cases. It's rare for people who are vaccinated against the disease to get sick.
But measles has made a comeback as child vaccination rates continue to decline in the country and the disease is circulating more globally, with the U.S. this year recording its first measles deaths in more than a decade.
'This case of measles highlights the importance of obtaining the MMR vaccine to protect ourselves and our community. The MMR vaccine is highly effective at preventing measles infection and also protects against mumps and rubella,' Dr. Bisola Ojikutu, Commissioner of Public Health for the City of Boston, said in a statement.
So far, the country has recorded 1,197 cases of measles this year, just shy of the 2019 record of 1,274, with nearly all of the cases involving people who are unvaccinated, according to CDC data. The U.S. has recorded three measles deaths in 2025.
In this latest confirmed measles case, the person visited several places in Boston, including a hotel and a museum, while infectious from June 7 through June 8 before getting on a flight to Miami, according to the measles alert. The notice doesn't state whether the person was vaccinated or unvaccinated, where the person was infected, or if the individual lives in Florida or elsewhere.
The Miami Herald has contacted the Florida Department of Health and the Boston Public Health Commission to learn more about the infected person's status, and whether they traveled anywhere else in South Florida. The Miami Herald has also contacted Miami International Airport and JetBlue to see what precautions the airport and airline have taken following the confirmed case.
Measles can be transmitted four days before the start of symptoms, according to the Florida health department. Symptoms can appear 7 to 14 days after contact with the virus, and are at first similar to a normal cold and can include cough, runny nose, red and watery eyes and a high fever up to 105 degrees. The rash typically appears three five days after the first symptoms.
How many measles cases has Florida recorded?
So far, Florida has recorded at least three confirmed measles cases this year, according to preliminary data from the state's infectious disease surveillance system, which goes up to June 7 and is the most available data, as of Monday, June 16. The most recently reported case, recorded in June, involved a person between the ages of 25 and 29 who lives in Leon County, part of the state's Panhandle. The person was infected in the U.S., but not in Florida, the data shows.
The report's preliminary data is based on when the case was reported to the state, with cases assigned based on the county where the person lives, regardless of where the person got sick, hospitalized, diagnosed or exposed.
The Miami Herald hasn't been able to confirm if the June Leon County measles case is different from the Boston to Miami traveler case.
Florida's other two confirmed measles cases this year were recorded in South Florida. One involved a Miami-Dade teen, the other was a child under 5 in Broward County. Last year, the state recorded at least a dozen cases of the rash-causing disease, some of which were linked to an outbreak at a Broward elementary school.
What else to know about measles in the U.S.
The measles, mumps and rubella vaccine, or MMR, which helps protect against measles infection, is considered to be highly effective in reducing infection and is one of the shots required to attend K-12 school in the U.S., though some students may have a religious or medical exemption.
Several health experts the Miami Herald has previously spoken to have attributed the country's growing measles outbreak, in part, to fewer parents vaccinating their kids after COVID as politics, misinformation and personal freedom have muddied vaccination guidance and reduced trust in what the family doctor recommends.
MORE: Why fewer kids are getting vaccinated in Florida — and how that could affect outbreaks
The CDC says the MMR vaccination rate among kindergartners in the U.S. ' is now below the 95% coverage target—much lower in some communities — and is decreasing.' Florida, for example, has seen a decline in overall mandatory school vaccinations for measles and other infectious diseases among kindergartners in recent years, as the Herald has previously reported.
The CDC said it has also noticed an increase in 'measles activity' globally in recent years, 'meaning more chances of an unvaccinated person infected with measles abroad returning to the United States.'
Because measles is highly contagious, it can 'easily spread in unvaccinated or under-vaccinated communities,' according to the CDC.
The CDC says that the best way to protect against measles is to get the MMR vaccine or the measles, mumps, rubella, and varicella (MMRV) vaccine, which also protects against chickenpox. Talk to your doctor if you have questions about the vaccine or are unsure if you were vaccinated.
People who believe — or were notified — that they were exposed to someone with measles should call their doctor for guidance. Don't show up to the doctor's office unannounced.