KCK health officials brace for World Cup crowds after measles detected in metro
With two months remaining until thousands of people trickle into Kansas City for the 2026 World Cup, Wyandotte County health officials are still working to address anticipated increases in infectious diseases at the local level and youth vaccination rates that are falling short.
As of April 1, the Wyandotte County Public Health Department did not know of any measles cases within county limits, interim director Terrie Garrison told the Unified Government Board of Commissioners last week.
But this doesn’t mean that there aren’t, or won’t be, any cases of the illness this year. Wyandotte saw at least one measles case in 2025, and that was not associated with an outbreak, according to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment.
And just last month, Kansas City, Missouri, reported that an unvaccinated adult contracted the city’s first case of the illness since 2018.
The 2025 spike in measles resulted in 91 people in 13 Kansas counties contracting the illness, according to KDHE data. Most Kansans who contracted the virus were young children.
Measles is a highly-contagious virus that can be prevented by utilizing the MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) vaccine. People who contract the illness often experience a fever, cough, runny nose and blotchy rashes that spread across the body, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The United States saw its highest surge of measles cases in 2025 than it did in the past 30 years, Garrison said. And, as thousands of people prepare to head to North America for the World Cup celebrations this summer, that surge is expected to continue.
“And 2026 is showing that it’s going to probably surpass that with over two-thirds of the same amount last year already being recorded in 2026,” she added.
In anticipation of that, the health department is conducting meetings with public schools, the Mid-America Regional Council, coroners and other health entities to determine how Wyandotte County would coordinate emergency responses in the case of an infectious disease outbreak or a natural disaster.
They are also discussing how to best keep the public informed during that time, Garrison said.
Vaccinations
The best way to prevent the mass spread of viral illness is through vaccinations, something children typically get when they’re young, Garrison said. Kindergarten vaccination rates across Wyandotte County was 83% during the 2024-25 school year, which was up from 75% the previous year.
During the 2023-24 year, Kansas City, Kansas Public Schools reported 55.8% of incoming kindergarteners had all their required vaccinations.
But the recommended vaccination rate within a community is 95%, Garrison said. Both KCKPS and Piper Unified School District struggle to get all of their students fully immunized, she told commissioners.
She attributed that to people’s access to getting the vaccines, given some parents don’t have the time or resources to take off work to get their kids to a clinic to get vaccinated. The health department has also heard from the community that some people aren’t educated on the importance of getting vaccinated, or they’re hesitant to get them because they “don’t believe in it,” Garrison told the board.
The health department offers walk-in vaccination clinics throughout the year and partners with local school districts during the back-to-school season to educate people about and administer vaccinations.
Health access in KCK
Economic standing can also affect people’s access to health care. Wyandotte County has a higher proportion of people who are uninsured and more children living in poverty than state and national rates reflect.
About 15% of the county’s residents don’t have medical insurance, Garrison said. That’s five percent more people than the state and national rates. But that 15% also reflects growth in health insurance access over time, given that number was closer to 24% in 2010.
And as the county continues to discuss how it will tackle housing insecurity and poverty that affects hundreds of KCK families, 22% of the county’s children are living in poverty compared to the 13% across Kansas and 16% nationally.
Wyandotte County also has a lower proportion of health providers serving its population, according to the health department. For every one primary care physician in the county, that person serves about 1,500 people.
Across Kansas, that number is closer to 1,270, and it’s 1,310 nationally.
There’s also about 2,260 people for every one dentist in Wyandotte County, Garrison said.
