Child With Measles Traveled Through MD, NoVA

BALTIMORE, MD — A child confirmed to have the measles traveled through Maryland, Washington, D.C., and Northern Virginia while infectious late Jan. 7, 2026 through early Jan. 8, 2026, according to state health officials.

Measles is a highly contagious disease that is spread easily through the air when an infectious person breaths, coughs or sneezes. It can also be transmitted by direct contact with infectious droplets.

The Maryland Department of Health said anyone who used these public trains or spaces Jan. 7 and 8 may have been exposed:

• Amtrak NE Regional Train from Philadelphia 30th Street Station to Washington, DC Union Station on Jan. 7 from 9 to 11:30 p.m.
• Amtrak BWI Shuttle to and from the BWI train station and the drop-off points outside the lower-level of BWI Airport on Jan. 7 10:45 p.m. to Jan. 8 at 1:30 a.m.
• BWI Airport Parking Shuttle to and from outside the lower-level outside of BWI Airport and the BWI Airport’s long-term parking lots on Jan. 7 at 11 p.m. to Jan. 8 at 2 a.m.

State health officials said in a news release that there was no measles exposure inside the terminals of Baltimore-Washington International Airport. And people who were not in these locations at the times listed were not exposed to the infectious person while they were in Maryland.

In a separate new release, the Virginia Department of Health said the Alexander T. Augusta Military Medical Center Emergency Department and Executive Medicine Suite in Fort Belvoir was a potential measles exposure site.

Anyone who traveled to the site Friday, from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 10 p.m. to midnight, may have been exposed, Virginia authorities said.

VDH described the patient as a “preschool-age child” who had “recently traveled internationally.”

What to Do If You Think You May Have Been Exposed

• Find out if you have been vaccinated for measles or have had measles previously. If you have received two doses of a measles-containing vaccine, or were born before 1957, you are generally considered protected.
  • To check your immunization status, call your healthcare provider or request records securely online via My Immunization Record “MyIR”.
• If you are not fully vaccinated or otherwise immune to measles and you might have been exposed, call your healthcare provider or your local health department to discuss the best next steps for you. In Virginia to check your immunization status, call your healthcare provider or request records through the VDH Record Request Portal.
• Monitor yourself for any early signs of measles for 21 days after your potential exposure.
• If you develop a fever or other symptoms of measles, stay home and do not go to childcare, school, or work, or other public spaces, and contact your health care provider. Call your health care provider before showing up at a waiting room or emergency department so that the facility can take measures to prevent measles from spreading to others.
• Watch for symptoms of measles for 21 days after the potential exposure. Monitoring for symptoms is especially important for people who are not fully vaccinated or otherwise immune to measles. The most likely time you would become sick would be between Jan. 16 to Jan. 30.

Early symptoms of measles are a fever of more than 101 degrees, runny nose, cough, and red, watery eyes. Usually, one to four days after the early symptoms, a red rash appears on the face and spreads to the rest of the body. A person with measles is contagious, beginning four days before the rash appears until four days after the rash begins.

“Vaccination remains essential to protecting ourselves, our families, and our communities against measles and other infectious diseases,” said Maryland Department of Health Deputy Secretary for Public Health Services Dr. Meg Sullivan. “These types of situations underscore the importance of knowing your vaccination status and ensuring you are up to date with all recommended vaccines.”

Measles cases occur sporadically in Maryland. There have been no cases of measles in 2026, three cases identified in 2025, one in 2024, one in 2023, and no cases from 2020-2022.

To date in 2026, Virginia has reported two cases of measles. Any additional exposure sites identified in Virginia will be posted to the VDH Measles website.