SALT LAKE CITY — A passenger with an active case of measles traveled through Salt Lake City International Airport multiple times before Memorial Day. Utah health officials did not believe the incident warranted an alert or advisory at the time and shared why they made that call.
The passenger's travel in Utah was first reported by the Park Record.
Both dates of travel in and out of the airport occurred just days before the Memorial Day holiday weekend, which was first brought to light in a meeting of the Summit County Board of Health.
The passenger traveled to Salt Lake City from Canada on May 19 before driving a rental vehicle to Burley, Idaho for a business trip. Four days later, the person then traveled from Idaho back to Salt Lake City, where they boarded another flight from the airport.
During their time in the area, the passenger was not believed to have made any stops in Utah after arriving and before departing from the airport. The Utah Department of Health and Human Services says other passengers on the individual's flights were contacted by the Salt Lake County Health Department, "and connected to appropriate service to prevent infection."
"Happily, this person did have some protection already, and before they got this measles case, they knew they had been exposed back in their home country, but had thought they were protected, so traveled," explained Utah State epidemiologist Leisha Nolen. "And so the evidence suggests when they do have that kind of vaccine protection, they are less infectious, they have a milder infection, and so therefore it is quite likely that they didn't have a very infectious case, and therefore there wouldn't be people who would get it from them."
The Summit County Board of Health, and presumably other state health agencies, were first notified that the unidentified individual had flown into Salt Lake City while they were in Idaho. Members of the board expressed surprise upon learning the passenger received some sort of medical attention for measles while in Idaho and was still allowed to travel back to Utah to board another flight in Salt Lake City.
While the Summit County Board of Health claimed the passenger has been placed on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s “Do Not Board” list, which bans them from flying anywhere in the United States, the Utah Department of Health and Human Services disputed that, saying they were "past their infectious period by the time of their departing flight."
CDC reports over 1,000 measles cases in 2025:
State health officials chose not to issue a health advisory or warning, as it was determined to be "low-risk" and there was no need to create "chaos," Summit County Nursing Director Derek Moss said during the meeting.
"Certainly, it is always a question of when do we want to tell the public about something," said Nolen. "Certainly, we want the public to be aware of things that are a threat to them and that they can do something to protect themselves about. So we really try to prioritize those messages where it is something that we want people to go and change behaviors, where they can do something to protect themselves, when they can watch for symptoms.
"In this case, since it was such a limited exposure, it didn't raise to that bar, and therefore, we did not approach it that way."
The Idaho Department of Health said the hotel in Burley where the traveler was staying has been notified, and that they are contacting guests who were at the location at the time of the visit.
“We are focused on working with state and local health organizations in this ongoing investigation,” said Tanis Maxwell, with the South Central Public Health District Family and Children’s Health Director. “Our priority is to keep the public informed and to support anyone who may have been exposed."
A spokesman for the Salt Lake County Department of Health was not allowed to discuss the incident since it is in the state’s jurisdiction, but did emphasize the importance of getting vaccinated against measles, with just the first MMR shot of the recommended two doses being 93 percent effective.
"So that’s a fantastic number, and if you get the second dose, you’re up to 97," explained Nicholas Rupp.
Sixty-three people with measles have traveled on planes, according to a Washington Post article published Tuesday. The highly contagious virus has since infected others in at least one of those cases they know about.
Three more individuals linked to a Turkish Airlines flight that landed at Denver International Airport have now tested positive for measles, bringing the count connected to that flight to six. Colorado has a total of 10 confirmed cases.
"If you are traveling, there’s a good chance you’re going to be in an area that is seeing some measles transmissions," said Rupp.
Because of the highly contagious nature of the measles virus and the danger while traveling by plane, a CDC spokesperson says Americans should make alternative travel plans if they are not fully vaccinated.
"You want to make sure you’re up to date on your MMR vaccine before you travel this summer," Rupp added.
There are currently 1,088 confirmed measles cases in the U.S. and three deaths.
