Harrisburg, PA — Pennsylvania’s measles outbreak has now surpassed 1,100 cases, with state officials reporting a sixth measles-related death as hospitalizations continue to rise.
The latest death involved a 39-year-old woman in Franklin County, according to county Coroner James Conner. His office said she had several underlying health conditions and had previously been diagnosed and treated for measles. The probable cause of death was described as an acute cardiac event possibly complicated by measles.
Pennsylvania reported 1,137 cases and 219 hospitalizations as of Monday, including 157 new infections over the previous week. Roughly one-third of cases have occurred in people 18 or younger, while fewer than 1% have been among those fully vaccinated.
State health officials have attributed the outbreak to low vaccination rates and continue recommending two doses of the MMR vaccine.
The federal death count remains lower than Pennsylvania’s because the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention uses a different review process for determining whether measles caused or contributed to a death.
Nationwide, the CDC has reported more than 4,000 confirmed measles cases across dozens of outbreaks this year, the highest level in decades.
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has repeatedly sent mixed messages about measles vaccination, at times encouraging parents to vaccinate while also publicly questioning vaccine effectiveness and praising anti-vaccine activists.
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