Grab your latte and buckle up, because South Carolina just became the hotbed of a very uncute trend: measles. More than 840 infections have been reported statewide—surpassing last year’s Texas tally—and it’s now the biggest U.S. measles outbreak since the disease was declared eliminated more than a quarter-century ago. Translation: this is not a throwback anyone asked for.

The outbreak, which kicked off in October, has dug in around the Spartanburg area, where vaccination coverage slipped below the level needed to stop the virus in its tracks. Most cases are among unvaccinated children and adults, creating a perfect runway for measles to strut from one person to the next with alarming ease.

Public health experts are reading South Carolina’s situation like a cautionary text for the rest of the country. Nationally, vaccination rates have softened, and religious exemptions to school immunization mandates have been rising. Put those trends together and you get clusters of susceptible people—exactly the kind of social circles where a highly contagious virus can find new friends fast.

Here’s the tea without the theatrics: measles spreads readily in indoor spaces and among close contacts, which means one spark can light up a pocket of low coverage. That’s why this isn’t just South Carolina’s problem. With travel, school activities, and everyday mingling, what flares in one community can seed cases in another, especially where immunization gaps already exist. Think classrooms, day cares, and waiting rooms—places where people mix and immunity matters.

Experts say the through line is painfully clear: when vaccination coverage drops below the level needed to block transmission, measles doesn’t just tiptoe back—it storms in. The Spartanburg cluster shows how quickly the virus can leverage local vulnerabilities once it finds a foothold, turning a preventable disease into a headline and a headache.

The broader message is equal parts simple and sobering. The United States kept measles at bay for decades, but that success was built on high vaccination coverage. As exemptions rise and routine shots slip, the protective wall thins, and outbreaks like South Carolina’s become more likely. No need for panic, darling—just a reality check: vigilance works, complacency doesn’t.

Bottom line: South Carolina’s surge is a neon sign to the rest of the country. If communities let vaccination coverage slide, measles is ready for an encore. Consider this your friendly, salon-side nudge from public health experts everywhere: don’t give the virus an opening, and it won’t steal the show.