Jalisco issued a health alert and ordered face masks in certain Guadalajara schools as measles cases emerged in the state’s capital city, a key venue host for the upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The state’s announcement came the same week that the Pan American Health Organization issued an epidemiological alert over the spread of the preventable disease across the Americas, with Mexico reporting the largest number of cases in the region, according to authorities cited in the report.
Mexico’s government said there were 1,981 confirmed measles cases this year and more than 5,200 suspected cases, and it reported that Jalisco is the epicenter of the outbreak. Jalisco, which includes Guadalajara, reported 1,163 confirmed cases this year and 2,092 suspected cases.
As part of its response, Jalisco health authorities said masks will be required in Guadalajara schools in seven specific neighborhoods for the next 30 days. In addition to the mask order, classes were suspended in 15 schools in Jalisco and in the central state of Aguascalientes, according to the report.
The outbreak’s origins were traced to last year’s spillover from the northern border region, with Mexico stating that measles first began in Chihuahua. Authorities said the initial case occurred after a Mennonite child became ill while visiting relatives in a region of Texas that was experiencing an outbreak, and that cases surged in Mennonite communities with high vaccine-hesitancy rates before spreading.
The report also cited a scientific warning that rising measles outbreaks across the hemisphere are linked to declining vaccination rates. Mauricio Rodríguez, a microbiology professor at the National Autonomous University of Mexico focused on epidemics, said Mexico’s case counts have risen in part because many communities do not complete the full measles immunization schedule.
Rodríguez said that the summer months and the arrival of international visitors increase the risk of further introductions and spread. “With the World Cup, many people are going to be visiting from outside (Mexico) and that represents a risk of introducing even more outbreaks from other places, Rodríguez said,” according to the report. Guadalajara, he said, is one of the main venues in Mexico for the soccer tournament.
On Thursday, the report said students and teachers in areas surrounding Guadalajara wore masks and lined up to receive vaccinations at centers set up in local government buildings. Ángel Ivan Soto Mendez and his family were among those waiting, and he said they had already prepared for their children to attend school with masks and disinfectant, adding, “If everyone doesn’t get vaccinated, there are going to be infections everywhere,” in remarks included in the report.
Mexico’s government said it has spent weeks encouraging vaccination and said the measles vaccine requires two doses for protection. It also announced the launch of vaccination sites in locations such as airports and bus stations, as health officials worked to contain transmission.
The report cited PAHO’s statement that, in the first three weeks of this year, 1,031 additional measles cases were confirmed across seven countries in the Americas, with no deaths reported. It also noted that Canada lost its measles-free status in November and that the United States and Mexico face the risk of meeting the same fate.
The report said that both governments requested a two-month extension to try to control the outbreak. It also noted that in January, the Trump administration withdrew from the World Health Organization, under whose umbrella PAHO operates.