Measles back in the Canaries: why Spain lost its "measles-free" status — and how to check your protection

Let's start with the news behind the individual case reports — the part that really carries weight. In February 2026 the World Health Organization announced that Spain no longer meets the criteria for a measles-free country, owing to renewed sustained transmission of the virus and rising infections in 2024 and 2025. Health authorities described it as a clear step backwards. Spain is not alone: Germany, Italy, France, Austria, the United Kingdom and the United States have all recently lost this status too. Last year Spain counted almost 400 measles cases — twice as many as in 2024.

How it played out in the Canaries

On the islands, things stayed comparatively mild. Around 40 cases were recorded in 2025, the great majority belonging to a single outbreak that began in October 2025 on La Palma and spread to Tenerife and Gran Canaria. The health authority declared it over in March 2026. Both remarkable and reassuring: all cases stayed mild, no one needed intensive care, and the reproduction number in this outbreak was around 1 — whereas measles is normally extremely contagious, with one infected person passing it on to about 14 others on average. The reason for the low spread: the virus circulated in a largely immunised population and found few unprotected people.

How dangerous is measles really?

Measles begins with fever, a runny nose and a cough, often with small whitish spots on the inside of the cheeks; the typical rash appears after three to seven days, starting on the face and spreading across the body. In most cases the illness is benign. But it can have complications — pneumonia, middle-ear infection, laryngitis or measles-associated hepatitis. Those most at risk are babies still too young to be vaccinated, and unvaccinated adults. That is exactly why high vaccination coverage protects not only the individual but also those who cannot be vaccinated themselves.