In 2025, New Mexico confirmed 100 measles cases across nine of its 33 counties, and each case cost an average $53,522, according to research published Aug. 4 in Annals of Internal Medicine.
Researchers with the CDC and New Mexico Department of Health analyzed the societal economic burden of these 100 cases through public health response costs, direct medical costs and productivity losses. The public health response costs totaled about $3.2 million, including $2.1 million for vaccination-related activities. About 130 public health responders worked on contact tracing across 205 contacts, which each cost $1,817, according to the study.
The $53,522 per measles case, equal to $5.35 million in total, ranged from February through September 2025.
