Measles outbreak over after 2 years, thousands infected in Canada: PHAC

Advertisement

Advertise with us

A measles outbreak that spanned two years and infected thousands of people in Canada is over.

Read this article for free:


By clicking the button above, an account will be created and you will begin to receive some of our recommended newsletters. You may opt out of any newsletter by visiting your Email and Communication Preferences page or by clicking "unsubscribe" at the bottom of any email.

or

Already have an account? Log in here »

To continue reading, please subscribe:

Digital Subscription

One year of digital access for only $1.44 a week*

  • Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
  • Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
  • Access News Break, our award-winning app
  • Play interactive puzzles

*Billed as $5.77 plus GST every four weeks. After 52 weeks, price increases to the regular rate of $19.95 plus GST every four weeks. Offer available to new and qualified returning subscribers only. Cancel any time.

To continue reading, please subscribe:

Add Free Press access to your Brandon Sun subscription for only an additional

$1 for the first 4 weeks*

  • Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
  • Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
  • Access News Break, our award-winning app
  • Play interactive puzzles
Start now

*Your next Brandon Sun subscription payment will increase by $1.00 and you will be charged $17.95 plus GST for four weeks. After four weeks, your payment will increase to $24.95 plus GST every four weeks.

A measles outbreak that spanned two years and infected thousands of people in Canada is over.

The Public Health Agency of Canada made the declaration in a press release Monday, stating that more than 6,400 people were infected across 10 provinces.

Two infants in Ontario and Alberta who were infected with measles while in the womb died after they were born.

Warning signage for suspected cases of measles is seen outside the main entrance of Woodstock General Hospital in Woodstock, Ont., Thursday, May 22, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nicole Osborne
Warning signage for suspected cases of measles is seen outside the main entrance of Woodstock General Hospital in Woodstock, Ont., Thursday, May 22, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nicole Osborne

The outbreak began in New Brunswick in October 2024 and about a year later led to the loss of Canada’s measles elimination status due to ongoing transmission of the highly contagious disease for more than 12 months.

Canada’s Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Joss Reimer says that although it’s encouraging to see the outbreak declared over, it doesn’t mean that measles is gone.

Infectious disease experts have attributed the return of measles to declining vaccination rates, misinformation-fuelled vaccine hesitancy and distrust of authority, as well as disruptions to routine immunizations during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Measles continues to circulate globally, and we can expect to see further travel-related cases here at home,” Reimer said in a statement.

Ontario, which was one of the most affected provinces, declared its outbreak over last fall, while Alberta’s ended in July. Public health officials in Manitoba said the province’s last laboratory-confirmed case was in August.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 19, 2026.

Canadian Press health coverage receives support through a partnership with the Canadian Medical Association. CP is solely responsible for this content.

Report Error Submit a Tip

More Stories

Disgraced ex-dean landed job at German university after fleeing Winnipeg

Maggie Macintosh 8 minute read Preview

Disgraced ex-dean landed job at German university after fleeing Winnipeg

Maggie Macintosh 8 minute read Friday, Oct. 16, 2026

Before he was arrested in a posh Paris suburb, the disgraced dean of Manitoba’s only law school — who fled the country following a 2020 expense scandal — kept a low profile at a German university.

Read
Friday, Oct. 16, 2026

Waters remain murky in uncharted Hellebuyck trade request territory

Ken Wiebe 4 minute read Preview

Waters remain murky in uncharted Hellebuyck trade request territory

Ken Wiebe 4 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 10:14 AM CDT

ST. LOUIS — The thing about being in uncharted waters is that the answer to the next question isn’t always readily apparent either above or below the surface.

Winnipeg Jets head coach Scott Arniel has been doing his best to ensure the upcoming two-game road trip against Central Division opponents doesn’t include a three-ring circus. But with news coming over the weekend that the suspension for goalie Connor Hellebuyck is set to expire on Friday, the club has to prepare for the next step in that process.

The problem, as Arniel conceded during his session on Monday afternoon before the team departed for Missouri, is that some of the hypotheticals need to be eliminated from the equation before the proper response can be determined.

“When it comes to Helly’s scenario, honestly I don’t really have a lot of information,” said Arniel. “I know everybody knows (about) Friday. That’s all we know.”

Read
Updated: Yesterday at 10:14 AM CDT

Police HQ report ‘outrageous’: Kinew

Joyanne Pursaga 6 minute read Preview

Police HQ report ‘outrageous’: Kinew

Joyanne Pursaga 6 minute read Yesterday at 6:18 PM CDT

Premier Wab Kinew says public inquiry findings that taxpayers were overcharged more than $40 million for the Winnipeg Police Service headquarters project and two city leaders broke the public trust are “outrageous.”

Inquiry commissioner Garth Smorang’s report, which was released Monday, concluded former mayor Sam Katz “violated the public trust” and council code of conduct, while the city’s former chief administrative officer Phil Sheegl suffered from a “complete lack of a moral compass.”

Smorang also found the city was overcharged $43.3 million for the project, with $42 million of that going to key contractor Caspian Projects.

“It’s outrageous that people who were elected betrayed the public here in the city. It’s outrageous that there were people in business who ripped you off, ripped me off — I was paying property taxes in Winnipeg at the time — and ripped all of us off to the tune of $43.3 million. That’s crazy,” said Kinew.

Read
Yesterday at 6:18 PM CDT

Katz ‘violated public trust,’ Sheegl lacked ‘moral compass,’ police HQ inquiry commissioner concludes

Joyanne Pursaga 8 minute read Preview

Katz ‘violated public trust,’ Sheegl lacked ‘moral compass,’ police HQ inquiry commissioner concludes

Joyanne Pursaga 8 minute read Monday, Oct. 19, 2026

The final report from the public inquiry into the scandal-plagued Winnipeg Police Service headquarters construction project concludes that former mayor Sam Katz and former city CAO Phil Sheegl broke public trust and engaged in unethical conduct.

And the report, released Monday by inquiry commissioner Garth Smorang, says the cost of the project — transforming a downtown Canada Post office tower and warehouse into the police HQ — soared, in part, because main contractor Caspian Projects overcharged the city by more than $40 million in expenses.

The project’s initial $135-million initial price tag rose to about $209 million in the end. The city purchased the complex in 2009; construction was completed in 2016.

Smorang’s report concludes Katz “violated the public trust” and council code of conduct, and Sheegl suffered from a “complete lack of a moral compass.”

Read
Monday, Oct. 19, 2026

New blood in St. Vital

Joyanne Pursaga 5 minute read Preview

New blood in St. Vital

Joyanne Pursaga 5 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 5:02 PM CDT

Candidates to fill the wide-open St. Vital city council seat are sharing their plans to ease traffic, tighten up development rules, protect trees and improve Winnipeg Transit.

Coun. Brian Mayes led the ward since 2011 but is not running for re-election, guaranteeing a new city councillor will be chosen.

Chris Sigurdson, a Louis Riel School Division trustee and criminal defence lawyer, is competing for the job with Mayes’ endorsement.

Sigurdson said his trustee work over the last 16 years provided a valuable education in local government that he could apply at city hall.

Read
Updated: Yesterday at 5:02 PM CDT

Theatre preview: pointy-eared actors to stage Shakespeare tragedy in Goblin:Macbeth

Ben Waldman 4 minute read Preview

Theatre preview: pointy-eared actors to stage Shakespeare tragedy in Goblin:Macbeth

Ben Waldman 4 minute read 2:01 AM CDT

Although they star in an upcoming local production of the Scottish Play, goblin thespians Wug, Kragva and Moog left it to director Rebecca Northan to handle publicity and interviews.

Were they also scared to utter the real title — saying “Macbeth” inside a theatre is believed to be bad luck — aloud?

“The goblins don’t know anything about our superstitions,” says Northan, an actor-writer-improv artist who last season performed and directed Murder-on-the-Lake, an immersive murder-mystery, for the Shaw Festival.

Northan, who co-created Goblin:Macbeth with Bruce Horak and Ellis Lalonde, can’t speak for her folkloric co-workers, but says the Halloweenish trio were inspired to mount the show after being impressed by Shakespeare’s firm grasp on the realm of fantasy.

Read
2:01 AM CDT