The latest announcement comes only days after Kentucky saw its first measles case of 2026 in an unvaccinated child under five. According to the Kentucky Department for Public Health, the second is also in a young unvaccinated child — though no further details have been released.
Kentucky Health Secretary Dr. Steven Stack has said the highly contagious disease presents a particular threat to the youngest people infected.
"For people under five years of age, for the littlest kids, when we've had major outbreaks, as many as one-in-five of them end up in the hospital," Stack told WUKY amid last year's growth in cases. "That's how sick they get."
In the meantime, two other Jessamine County students are quarantining out of precaution after being exposed.
The initial case is believed to be linked to an unvaccinated out-of-state traveler who visited Lexington between Dec. 31 and Jan. 2.
Cabinet for Health and Family Services data show there were at least 13 confirmed measles cases in Kentucky in 2025.