Theme Park Scope

This one isn’t a fun update, but it’s an important one, so we want to make sure it reaches anyone who needs it: the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health has confirmed that a person infectious with measles visited Universal Studios Hollywood…

…and anyone at the park during a specific window could have been exposed.

According to LA County health officials, the infected individual was at Universal Studios Hollywood on Sunday, July 26, 2026, from 10 AM to 9 PM…essentially the entire park day. The county announced the case on Wednesday, August 6, and is also investigating other possible exposure locations in the area.

If you were at the park during that window on July 26, health officials say you may be at risk of developing measles anywhere from 7 to 21 days after exposure, which means the relevant monitoring period runs into mid-August.

What You Should Do If You Were There

Public health officials are recommending the following for anyone who was at Universal Studios Hollywood during that time:

• Confirm your vaccination status. If you’ve had two documented doses of the MMR vaccine, or you’ve previously had measles, you’re very likely protected, but health officials still recommend watching for symptoms out of caution.
• If you’re unvaccinated, have unknown vaccination status, are pregnant, have an infant, or are immunocompromised, contact your healthcare provider as soon as possible; regardless of your vaccination history in the immunocompromised case.
• Watch for symptoms, which typically include fever, cough, runny nose, red or watery eyes, and the characteristic rash that usually appears a few days after the first symptoms start.
• If symptoms do develop, call a healthcare provider before showing up in person. Measles is airborne and extremely contagious (about 9 out of 10 unvaccinated people who are in close contact with an infected person go on to develop it themselves) so calling ahead lets a doctor’s office or urgent care prepare and helps avoid exposing other patients in the waiting room.
• If you’re unsure of your vaccination history, a simple blood test called a measles IgG titer can confirm whether you already have immunity, without needing to track down old vaccination records.

This isn’t an isolated incident for the region this year. It’s reportedly the ninth confirmed measles case in Los Angeles County in 2026, following a string of earlier exposures tied to some of the county’s busiest locations, including a case connected to an international traveler who visited Disneyland Resort while infectious, a case tied to visits to three separate restaurants, and cases connected to both LAX and Hollywood Burbank Airport earlier in the year.

Nationally, the CDC reports that most 2026 measles cases have been in children and teenagers 19 and younger, and that roughly 1 in 10 children under age 5 diagnosed this year has required hospitalization. About 93% of this year’s cases nationwide have occurred in people who were unvaccinated or whose vaccination status was unknown. The CDC’s standard recommendation is two doses of the MMR vaccine (the first between 12 and 15 months of age, the second between ages 4 and 6) which is about 97% effective against measles, compared to 93% effective after a single dose.

If You’re Planning a Trip to Universal Studios Hollywood

There’s no indication this changes anything about visiting the park going forward; this is specifically about the July 26 exposure window. But if you or your family aren’t up to date on MMR vaccination and you’re planning any theme park trip, checking your status ahead of time is a genuinely easy thing to knock out before you go.

We’ll keep watching for updates from LA County Public Health as this investigation continues, so check back with Theme Park Scope if anything changes.