Measles has continued to spread throughout the Palmetto State. Although the outbreak is still concentrated in Spartanburg County, cases are reported to have spread to schools in different parts of the state like Anderson and Greenville counties.
January in particular has been a measles-filled month for the state. The South Carolina Department of Public Health reported 124 new cases since its Tuesday update and a new case total of 558. The Jan. 16 announcement matched the count of new cases in the Tuesday, Jan. 13 update. And SCDPH reported 99 new cases Jan. 9.
Tracking down measles cases and sources of exposure is a multi-step process. State epidemiologist Dr. Linda Bell said earlier in the month that new case discoveries will likely continue at least for weeks. And people have been exposed without their knowledge.
"An increasing number of public exposure sites are being identified with likely hundreds more people exposed who are not aware they should be in quarantine if they are not immune to measles. Previous measles transmission studies have shown that one measles case can result in up to 20 new infections among unvaccinated contacts," Bell said in a statement earlier in January.
Students at nine schools in Spartanburg County were confirmed by SCDPH to be placed into quarantine. Some of the schools already had students sent to quarantine in earlier stages of the outbreak, while others are new to the list. The schools with reported exposure were Holly Springs-Motlow Elementary, Campobello Graming School, Crestview Elementary, Libertas Academy, Fairforest Elementary, Berry Shoals Elementary, Oakland Elementary, Mabry Middle School and Landrum High School.
Crestview Elementary is a Greenville County school. And although not listed, Anderson School District 3 Chief Communications Officer Dylan McCullough said the district had learned of a measles case connected to Starr Elementary. The student had not attended school since leaving early Jan. 7 after feeling ill.
"It was just a situation with timing," McCullough said. "But we've now been in contact with DPH."
SCDPH is working to identify specifics on the case.
"We have a confirmation process for new cases that required investigation and potential notifications before we can publicly confirm cases at a location," SCDPH Public Information Officer Casey White said in a statement. "We have just initiated our investigation of a reported case in an Anderson school."
More than 530 people remain in quarantine. Eighty-five people are in isolation. Public exposure was also confirmed at a Walmart, a laundry service and a discount store in Spartanburg. The state's public health agency will now publish public exposures as they are reported.
About 93% of the state's cases are in children. SCDPH releases updates each Tuesday and Friday at around 1 p.m.
In the midst of South Carolina's outbreak, the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services launched its own measles dashboard. The state reported one new case of measles Friday. Eight cases of the disease were reported in North Carolina since late December 2025, and a majority of the cases are confirmed to be linked to South Carolina's outbreak — the new Carbarrus County, N.C., case reported Friday was in a person who had traveled to South Carolina.
