On Jun. 26, 2025, the New Mexico Department of Health (NMDOH) announced that five people who are incarcerated at a New Mexico county detention facility have measles.

The Luna County Detention Center, located in the southwest New Mexico city of Deming, houses about 400 incarcerated people and has 100 staff members. State health officials say they are determining the vaccination status of people being held at the facility and are providing testing kits and equipment.

As of Friday June 27, the U.S. has 1,227 measles cases nationwide as of Tuesday, including active outbreaks in 12 states.

The highly contagious and vaccine-preventable illness has been spreading in New Mexico since February, starting first in Lea County — just across the border from the epicenter of the historic Texas outbreak that has sickened 750 people since late January.

New Mexico had 81 confirmed measles cases Tuesday, with Thursday’s announcement bringing the total to 86. One state resident died of measles in March. The adult was unvaccinated and did not seek medical care.