Measles Eradication Impossible Due to Vaccine Hesitancy in Wealthy Nations, Bill Gates Says

Bill Gates has dropped one of the Gates Foundation's long-term health ambitions: wiping measles off the map for good.

The Microsoft co-founder told Reuters in an interview published Tuesday, September 15, that eliminating measles as a global threat is no longer achievable for now, with rising vaccine hesitancy in wealthy countries threatening progress against the disease.

The Gates Foundation, the philanthropic organization focused on global health and vaccination programs in low-income countries, had previously included measles eradication among its long-term goals.

That goal is now no longer on its list.

A Target Removed From the List

Gates said doubts about vaccines in richer nations have grown enough that his foundation no longer sees measles eradication as realistic for now. He described the situation as tragic.

Measles is one of the most contagious diseases known, spreading through coughing and sneezing, and it can be prevented through vaccination,according to the World Health Organization.

For decades, global health efforts have treated measles elimination as within reach because the vaccine is highly effective.

Gates' comments mark a rare admission from one of the world's largest funders of vaccination programs that growing vaccine hesitancy is now threatening progress toward eliminating the disease.

Where the Doubt Is Coming From

Reuters linked the rise in vaccine hesitancy in wealthy countries to years of vaccine skepticism championed by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the current United States Secretary of Health and Human Services under President Donald Trump.

Kennedy has publicly questioned vaccine safety for years, including before taking his current government role.

Gates said he worries that doubts spreading among Americans will not stay contained within the United States and could influence attitudes elsewhere.

Still, he said that spillover has not yet reached the lower-income countries where his foundation concentrates its work.

The Same Disease Hits Poorer Countries Harder

That distinction matters because measles can be far deadlier in lower-income countries than in wealthier ones, particularly where malnutrition and gaps in healthcare make it harder for children to recover.

A child who is already undernourished or has limited access to healthcare faces a greater risk of severe measles and death.

Gates' concern is that vaccine skepticism in wealthy countries could eventually spread to places where measles continues to pose a serious threat.

A Wider Story About Aid and Trust

Gates made the comments ahead of his foundation's annual Goalkeepers report, which tracks progress toward the United Nations' global development goals set for 2030, including targets on health.

In last year's report, Gates warned about the impact of foreign aid cuts led by the Trump administration and followed by other wealthy countries, including the United Kingdom and Germany, on health programs serving the world's poorest people.

This year, Gates said those cuts had likely caused many deaths, although the partial restoration of some funding helped avoid the worst-case scenario he had feared.

Reuters reported that efforts from the countries affected by the cuts, along with other health organizations, also helped hold off a larger disaster.

Measles remains highly preventable through vaccination, but falling confidence in vaccines in wealthy countries is threatening progress against a disease that once appeared increasingly within reach of elimination.

Pennsylvania shows what the warning looks like

Gates' comments come as measles is already causing deaths and sustained transmission in the United States.

In Pennsylvania, health officials have reported the state's first measles associated deaths in 35 years.

By September 15, the Pennsylvania Department of Health had confirmed four measles associated deaths in 2026, while the outbreak had grown to 693 confirmed cases across 38 counties.

The state recorded only 16 measles cases in all of 2025, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Health.

The outbreak is unfolding alongside a broader decline in childhood measles vaccination in the United States.

CDC data show that MMR vaccination coverage among U.S. kindergartners fell from 95.2% in the 2019 to 2020 school year to 92.5% in 2024 to 2025.

For the 2025 to 2026 school year, coverage fell slightly further to 92.4%.

The CDC says maintaining vaccination coverage of about 95% is important for preventing measles from spreading through communities.

The national picture is also worsening.

According to the CDC, the United States had recorded more than 3,100 confirmed measles cases by early September 2026, already exceeding the 2,289 cases reported during the whole of 2025.