Pennsylvania’s measles outbreak has reached 977 confirmed cases across 39 counties, according to a new update from the state Department of Health.
The department reported 34 new cases since September 30, pushing the outbreak closer to a grim milestone not seen in the United States in decades.
Five people have died from measles-associated causes in Pennsylvania this year, and all five were unvaccinated at the time of their deaths.
The most recent fatality involved an unvaccinated Lancaster County resident, confirmed by the state earlier in the week following its Wednesday announcement.
Only four of the 977 confirmed cases in Pennsylvania involved vaccinated individuals, underscoring the vaccine’s effectiveness against the disease.
A total of 195 people have been hospitalized since the outbreak began in late April, with nearly 20% of all identified cases requiring hospital care.
More than 53,000 doses of the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine were administered statewide in September alone, more than double the approximately 25,000 doses typically given in a single month.
State health center staff have administered more than 5,600 MMR vaccinations at 189 pop-up clinics in affected communities since the outbreak began, with Department of Health nurses providing more than 8,700 doses statewide this year.
More than two-thirds of the cases in Pennsylvania involve adults, and the state has added more than 100 new cases in the past week, cementing its status as the nation’s measles hot spot.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has confirmed only two measles-related deaths nationwide this year without naming the states involved.
That federal count has become the focal point of a dispute between Pennsylvania Governor Shapiro and US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. over how measles deaths are classified.
Pennsylvania uses a “measles-associated” designation when a person with confirmed measles dies within 30 days of developing symptoms, unless the death resulted from an unrelated event.
Kennedy, a vaccine skeptic, accused Shapiro of politicizing the deaths and initially questioned whether two deaths reported by the state in August were actually linked to measles.
The US has recorded 3,887 measles cases this year as of October 1, according to CDC data, reflecting a significant national resurgence of the once-eliminated disease.
Measles is a highly contagious respiratory virus capable of causing severe complications including pneumonia and brain swelling, particularly in unvaccinated populations.
