Small Virginia child, out-of-state resident sick with measles, creating exposure risk

RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) -- Both a small Northern Virginia child and an out-of-state visitor have confirmed cases of measles, creating an exposure risk for anyone who visited the same places around the same times.

On Friday, Feb. 6, the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) reported a confirmed measles case in a Northern Virginia resident, as well as a sick traveler who created an exposure risk when visiting Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.

The confirmed case involves a small child no older than 4 years of age. No additional information on either patient was provided to protect their privacy.

This is the sixth confirmed measles case that Virginia has seen since the beginning of 2026. All but one of those cases has been reported out of Northern Virginia. The most recent case was reported just two days prior to this most recent one.

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These two sick individuals, when visiting these Northern Virginia places, have created an exposure risk for those who were also at those places around the same times.

Those exposure locations include:

• Heathcote Health Center, 15195 Heathcote Blvd., Prince William County
  • When: Between 1:15 and 4:15 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 29
• Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Terminal 2, 2401 Smith Blvd., Arlington County
  • When: Between 12:30 and 10:30 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 26
• Washington Area Metro
  • Where: Yellow Line Train from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport station, transferring at the Gallery Place -- Chinatown station to the Red Line Train heading towards the Glenmont station
  • When: Between 8:30 and 11:30 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 26

If you were in any of these places during the listed dates and times, you may have been exposed to measles. The VDH said that it is working to identify people who may have been exposed.

What do I do if I’ve been exposed?

Measles is a highly infectious disease that is easily spread through the air or by direct contact with mucus or throat discharge from the infected person. State health officials stress that measles is “easily preventable” through vaccination. Two doses of this vaccine provide lifetime protection.

For those reasons, if you were exposed but have received those two doses, you are considered safe — you do not need to do anything. Additionally, anyone born before 1957 is considered safe, per the VDH.

Those who have only received one dose of the vaccine are not fully protected, but they are “very likely” to be protected.

At-risk, exposed individuals who are unvaccinated and born after that cutoff should contact their healthcare provider immediately, as they are at risk of developing measles.

They are also encouraged to monitor themselves for symptoms, which can develop within 21 days of exposure. State health officials believe that anyone who was infected through this exposure event would likely develop symptoms between Dec. 12 and Dec. 29.

I’m at risk — what symptoms should I look out for?

During the first stage of a measles infection, sick people often see a fever higher than 101 degrees Fahrenheit, a runny nose, red and watery eyes and a cough, according to state health officials. If you were exposed and infected, these symptoms would likely appear within 7 to 14 days of said exposure.

The sickness usually progresses to its second stage about three to five days after the first stage begins. Sick people will start to notice a rash on their face, which will spread to the rest of their body.

Measles is contagious for four days before the rash appears and for four days afterwards, the VDH said.

If you start experiencing any of these symptoms, you should immediately self-isolate to prevent additional exposures to others.

To read the full press release from the VDH, click here.