Scott Thorpe is the Executive Director and founder of the Southern Alliance for Public Health Leadership.
Public health discussions often focus on medicine. But when preventable diseases spread through a community, the consequences reach far beyond hospitals and clinics. They affect workers, businesses, schools, and the broader economic stability of local communities.
South Carolina is currently seeing that reality unfold as the measles virus continues to spread in and around Spartanburg County. As of February 2026, the state has reported nearly 1,000 cases, mainly among people who were unvaccinated.
While the measles virus was once considered to be eradicated in the United States, declining vaccination rates have allowed the virus to reappear. South Carolina’s outbreak reflects a broader, concerning national trend of highly contagious diseases quickly spreading when vaccination rates fall. Because the measles virus spreads so easily, even small gaps in immunity can allow outbreaks to grow rapidly once the virus enters a community.
When outbreaks occur, the costs begin almost immediately.
Parents may miss work while caring for sick children or while families remain home during quarantine periods. Employers lose productivity. Schools and childcare providers must adjust schedules and staffing as students and staff isolate.
These disruptions ripple outward and have real economic costs.
Researchers estimate that lost productivity alone averages more than $14,000 per measles case. Multiply that across hundreds or even thousands of cases and the economic impact multiplies for families, employers, and local communities.
Public health systems face major financial pressure during outbreaks as well. Containing the virus requires testing, contact tracing, vaccination clinics, and additional staff to manage the response.
Those efforts can cost $30,000 to $50,000 per case.
Recent outbreaks across the country show how quickly those expenses escalate. The 2019 Clark County, Washington measles outbreak cost about $3.4 million, while the 2025 Texas outbreak cost an estimated $35.4 million when medical care, productivity losses, and public health response were factored into calculations.
The economic impact extends beyond government budgets.
When outbreaks spread through a community, consumer behavior changes. Parents with young children may avoid crowded spaces. Restaurants and retailers may see fewer customers. Small businesses can struggle when employees must quarantine or stay home with sick children.
These economic effects don’t appear in a single line item on a budget. Instead, they accumulate across households, businesses, and public agencies. Employers absorb lost productivity, families absorb lost wages, and public health departments redirect resources that could have supported other community priorities. Preventable disease outbreaks function like a slow economic disruption.
President Donald Trump has acknowledged the effectiveness of vaccines, stating plainly, “You have vaccines that work. They just pure and simple work.” He has also said he thinks those “vaccines should be used. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz urged individuals to, “take the vaccine, please; we have a solution for our problem.”
The encouraging news is that the economic damage caused by outbreaks is largely preventable.
Vaccination remains one of the most cost-effective investments in public health. Research shows that every $1 spent on childhood immunizations saves roughly $11 in future health care and societal costs, including avoided illness, lost productivity, and outbreak response expenses.
Preventing outbreaks helps protect workers, businesses, and the stability of local economies. It helps keep schools open, businesses operating, and communities functioning normally.
Public opinion reflects this understanding. In a recent statewide survey conducted by Cygnal, 70% of South Carolina voters say childhood vaccines provide significant benefits, including strong support across political lines.
Preventing disease is not only good public health policy, it is good economic policy.
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Scott Thorpe is the Executive Director and founder of the Southern Alliance for Public Health Leadership.
