MAGA measles epidemic cost Millions. The return of measles in the U.S. can carry a huge financial burden on the U.S. healthcare system. A new tool developed by researchers at Johns Hopkins University estimates that the 2025 measles outbreak in the U.S. — which involved roughly 2,300 confirmed cases nationwide — carried an economic cost of more than $37 million. Those costs extend beyond treating people who become sick, accounting for the resources spent investigating and containing outbreaks and wages lost when people have to miss work.