For which adults are 0, 1, or 2 doses of MMR vaccine recommended to prevent measles?

Zero, one, or two doses of MMR vaccine are needed for the adults described below.

Zero doses:

• adults born before 1957 except healthcare personnel*
• adults born 1957 or later who are at low risk (e.g., not an international traveler or healthcare worker, or person attending college or other post-high school educational institution) and who have already received one or more documented doses of a live measles-containing vaccine
• adults with laboratory evidence of immunity or laboratory confirmation of measles

One dose of MMR vaccine:

• adults born in 1957 or later who are at low risk (e.g., not an international traveler, healthcare worker, or person attending college or other post-high school educational institution) and have no documented vaccination with a live measles-containing vaccine and no laboratory evidence of immunity or prior measles infection

Two doses of MMR vaccine:

• high-risk adults without any prior documented live measles-containing vaccination and no laboratory evidence of immunity or prior measles infection, including:
  • healthcare personnel*
  • international travelers born in 1957 or later
  • people attending colleges and other post-high school educational institutions
  • close contacts of immunocompromised people
  • people with HIV infection (vaccinate only if CD4 cell percentages are at least 15% and CD4 count is at least 200 cells/mm3)

People who previously received a dose of measles vaccine in 1963–1967 and are unsure which type of vaccine it was, or are sure it was inactivated measles vaccine, should be revaccinated with either one (if low-risk) or two (if high-risk) doses of MMR vaccine. If the vaccine given was the live virus measles vaccine, the dose is considered valid and does not need to be repeated.

* Healthcare personnel born before 1957 may be considered for MMR vaccination in the absence of an outbreak but are recommended for MMR vaccination during outbreaks.