A yearlong outbreak of tuberculosis in the Kansas City, Kansas area has taken local experts aback, even if it does not appear to be the largest outbreak of the disease in U.S. history as a state health official claimed last week.

Kansas is currently experiencing a rare outbreak of tuberculosis (TB), the world’s deadliest infectious disease. TB is spread via germs in the air and usually affects the lungs but can also affect the brain, the kidneys or the spine.

Kansas has experienced a significant outbreak of tuberculosis with 67 active infections and even more latent cases of the disease.

State health officials said that dozens of people in the Kansas City, Kan., area have the disease, which has drawn a federal response.

In late January 2025, news outlets reported on an outbreak of tuberculosis (TB) in the Kansas City, Kansas, area. According to several of these reports, and posts sharing the news on social media, the outbreak was "unprecedented,

After the CDC said the Kansas tuberculosis outbreak isn't the largest in documented history, KDHE clarified they meant the largest in a single year.

You don’t need to have the vaccine to attend colleges in Kansas, but some do require you to get tested for tuberculosis before enrolling and going to classes on campus, like at the University of Kansas.

Experts with the Kansas Department of Public Health are currently dealing with an outbreak of Tuberculosis cases.

Kansas City-area residents may be alarmed to hear that Wyandotte County is at the epicenter of the largest recorded tuberculosis outbreak in U.S. history, according to state health officials. Fortunately, they say the health risk remains very low.