At least seven more nursing students at a Florida university are battling measles, health officials confirmed this week, as outbreaks of the virus continue to grow nationwide.
The students at Ave Maria University recently contracted the highly contagious virus, the school said in a statement this week, bringing to the total number of cases there to at least 57.
In a Feb. 11 online campus health update, the university wrote that since the start of the semester, 50 nurse-assessed students “have progressed beyond the contagious period and now have natural immunity.”
Measles causes a reddish, blotchy rash that usually appears on the body three to five days after initial symptoms, according to the Centers for Disease Control. An infected person can spread the virus four days before a rash appears through four days after it appears.
“All nurse-assessed students on campus within the four-day contagious period following the onset of a rash are in quarantine,” the university said in a statement.
The school will continue to provide support through ongoing monitoring and quarantine protocols, free vaccinations, and “transparent communication,” the statement said.
The university is in Collier County, about a 35-minute drive northeast from Naples. According to the state Department of Health, 46 confirmed measles cases had been reported across Collier County from Jan. 1 through Feb. 7, 2026.
State officials are urging people to check their vaccination status as measles cases rise across the nation with outbreaks reported in states including California and South Carolina.
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What is measles and how do you get it?
Measles is a vaccine-preventable disease caused by a virus that primarily, and most severely, affects children. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), it infects the respiratory tract before spreading throughout the body.
According to CDC data, one in five unvaccinated people who contract the virus end up hospitalized.
Measles is spread through contact with infected nasal or throat secretion.
Outbreak comes amid changes in federal vaccine guidance
The outbreak at the university comes just over a month after federal health officials overhauled their long-time guidance on childhood immunization and revised recommendations for routine vaccination against six infectious diseases, including the flu.
In August 2025, the Department of Health and Human Services announced it would wind down mRNA vaccine development activities under its biomedical research unit, the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority. The unit helped companies develop medical supplies to address public health threats and had provided billions of dollars to develop vaccines during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Major medical organizations and health experts have criticized the changes to guidelines under Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a longtime vaccine skeptic who has been making sweeping changes to not only vaccines but food and medicine policies.
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Can you get measles if you have been vaccinated?
Yes, you can contract the virus if you have been vaccinated with the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine (MMR), according to the CDC, but it is rare.
About three in 100 people who have gotten the two-dose vaccination may contract the virus when exposed, the CDC says. Their symptoms are milder than those who contract it without being vaccinated, and they are less likely to spread measles.
Per CDC data, one dose of the MMR vaccine is 93% effective against measles, 78% effective against mumps, and 97% effective against rubella. Two doses of MMR vaccine are 97% effective against measles and 88% effective against mumps.
This story has been updated with new information.
Contributing: Mary Walrath-Holdridge and Thao Nguyen
Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@usatoday.com and follow her on X @nataliealund.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Nursing students at Florida university contract measles
