Pennsylvania reports fourth measles-related death, the most in US in decades
Pennsylvania has reported four deaths related to measles in 2026.
By Jamie Gumbrecht, Meg Tirrell, CNN
(CNN) — Pennsylvania has reported a fourth death related to measles, the latest in a growing outbreak that has also sparked ongoing political clashes.
It has been decades since the United States has tallied this number of measles deaths; 1992 was the last time there were four measles deaths in one year. Last year, there were three US deaths from measles – two in Texas and one in New Mexico.
The latest death in Pennsylvania was an unvaccinated teen who lived in Mifflin County. Andrea Alcalde, the county coroner, said the 18-year-old died from acute disseminated encephalomyelitis, a rare neurological condition that can occur after an infection.
Previously, the state reported two deaths in infants who had measles. Over the weekend, the Jefferson County coroner reported the death of a 40-year-old woman.
“My thoughts are with the two families who lost loved ones to this highly-contagious virus, as Pennsylvania faces the worst measles outbreak in more than three decades,” Pennsylvania Secretary of Health Dr. Debra Bogen said in a statement Tuesday. “We remain committed to working with our partners across Pennsylvania to stem this outbreak and prevent more deaths. That means ensuring people have the facts about measles and access to the MMR vaccine – which kept measles outbreaks at bay for decades.”
The MMR vaccine is the best way to protect against measles, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says. Two doses provide 97% protection against measles. Approved since 1963, the vaccine is very safe, and side effects are usually mild and go away on their own, the agency says.
However, measles cases have begun to surge as vaccination rates decline.
Pennsylvania has counted 693 measles cases in 38 counties this so far this year. Nationally, more than 3,200 measles cases have been reported, according to the CDC.
Measles typically causes about 1 in 5 people who aren’t vaccinated to be hospitalized, according to the CDC. As many as 1 out of every 20 children with measles gets pneumonia, the most common cause of death from measles in young children. One of every 1,000 kids with measles will develop encephalitis, or brain swelling.
The virus kills 1 to 3 of every 1,000 children who become infected.
In a post on X, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Democrat, said these measles-related deaths – the first in Pennsylvania in 35 years – are “tragedies.”
“Pennsylvania is experiencing the worst measles outbreak in the country,” he wrote. “This disease was declared eliminated in the United States in 2000 — yet decades later, we are seeing it surge due to lower vaccination rates.”
Deaths spark political clashes
The recent deaths have lead to a war of words over how measles deaths are counted. So far, the CDC has not counted any measles deaths in 2026.
CNN previously reported that the CDC was not counting the first two measles-associated deaths reported by Pennsylvania, saying it doesn’t have enough information to determine whether measles caused or contributed to the fatalities. The decision to exclude the deaths from the agency’s weekly update came from the CDC’s new director, Dr. Erica Schwartz.
Shapiro said in late August, when the state announced the first two measles-associated deaths, that he’d declined an offer from US Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for federal help. Shapiro then said he’d told the secretary that his “actions and his rhetoric,” including spreading misinformation about vaccines, was harming communities.
Kennedy, an outspoken vaccine skeptic, shot back on social media, accusing Shapiro of fearmongering and the “weaponization of infectious disease” for political gain. He suggested the deaths may have been “altogether fabricated” by one of Shapiro’s “hopeful staffers” to support a narrative that measles infection is more dangerous than it actually is.
The two deaths in Lancaster County were in infants, the county coroner there said, but his office disputed whether one of the deaths was caused by measles. A newborn died of a ruptured spleen, which the coroner, Dr. Stephen Diamantoni, said his forensic pathologist deemed wasn’t caused by the viral illness.
A second death, in a six-week-old infant with a serious genetic condition called Amish lethal microcephaly, was caused by measles, Diamantoni told CNN.
After the two additional deaths were reported this week, Shapiro again lashed out at Kennedy.
“This serious situation continues to be made worse by RFK Jr. playing games with public health and safety. It’s long past time for @SecKennedy to stop stoking vaccine skepticism and misinformation and compromising the serious mission of the nation’s public health agencies,” Shapiro said in a post on X. “It is also deeply concerning to learn that the Secretary personally intervened in an otherwise administrative process to direct the CDC to not report these Pennsylvania deaths, presumably because it doesn’t fit his phony narrative.”
CNN has reached out to HHS for a response to Shapiro’s comments.
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CNN’s Deidre McPhillips contributed to this report.
