Pennsylvania reports fourth measles-related death, the most in US in decades

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Pennsylvania has reported a fourth death related to measles, the latest in a growing outbreak.

It has been decades since the United States has tallied four 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 person who lived in Mifflin County. 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.”

So far, Pennsylvania has counted 693 measles cases in 28 counties this year.

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Adult woman dies of measles complications in growing Pennsylvania outbreak

Measles typically causes about one in five people who aren’t vaccinated to be hospitalized, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention . As many as one 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 one to three of every 1,000 children who become infected. Nationally, more than 3,200 measles cases have been reported, according to the CDC .

The MMR vaccine is the best way to protect against measles, the CDC 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 .

The deaths in Pennsylvania sparked a political clash over how deaths are counted. So far, the CDC has not counted any measles deaths in 2026.

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Democrat, said in late August when the state announced the first two measles-associated deaths that he’d declined an offer from Robert F. Kennedy Jr., secretary of the US Department of Health and Human Services, for federal help. He 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 .

This is a breaking news story and will be updated.

CNN’s Deidre McPhillips contributed to this report.

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宾夕法尼亚州报告了第四例与麻疹相关的死亡病例，这是不断蔓延的疫情中的最新一起。

美国已经几十年没有出现过四例麻疹死亡病例了；上一次一年内出现四例麻疹死亡病例还是在1992年。去年，美国共有三例麻疹死亡病例——两例在德克萨斯州，一例在新墨西哥州。

宾夕法尼亚州最新一例死亡病例是一名居住在米夫林县的未接种疫苗者。此前，该州报告了两例婴儿因麻疹死亡的病例。上周末，杰斐逊县验尸官报告了一名40岁女性的死亡病例。

宾夕法尼亚州卫生部长黛布拉·博根博士周二在一份声明中表示：“我向因这种高传染性病毒失去亲人的两个家庭致以最深切的慰问，宾夕法尼亚州正面临三十多年来最严重的麻疹疫情。我们将继续与宾夕法尼亚州各地的合作伙伴携手合作，遏制疫情蔓延，防止更多人死亡。这意味着我们要确保民众了解麻疹的相关知识，并能接种麻疹、腮腺炎、风疹疫苗（MMR疫苗）——正是这种疫苗在过去几十年里有效地控制了麻疹疫情的爆发。”

截至目前，宾夕法尼亚州今年已在 28 个县报告了 693 例麻疹病例。

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宾夕法尼亚州麻疹疫情持续蔓延，一名成年女性死于麻疹并发症。

据美国疾病控制与预防中心统计，未接种疫苗的麻疹患者中，约有五分之一需要住院治疗。每20名麻疹患儿中就有1名会并发肺炎，肺炎是幼儿麻疹死亡的最常见原因。每1000名麻疹患儿中就有1名会发展为脑炎，即脑肿胀。

该病毒会导致每1000名感染儿童中1至3人死亡。据美国疾病控制与预防中心（CDC）统计，全美已报告超过3200例麻疹病例。

美国疾病控制与预防中心（CDC）表示，麻疹、腮腺炎、风疹（MMR）疫苗是预防麻疹的最佳方法。接种两剂可提供97%的麻疹保护率。该机构称，这种疫苗自1963年获准使用以来，安全性极高，副作用通常较轻微，且会自行消失。

宾夕法尼亚州的死亡病例引发了一场关于死亡人数统计方式的政治冲突。截至目前，美国疾病控制与预防中心尚未统计到2026年的任何麻疹死亡病例。

宾夕法尼亚州州长、民主党人乔什·夏皮罗在8月下旬该州宣布首例麻疹相关死亡病例时表示，他拒绝了美国卫生与公众服务部部长小罗伯特·F·肯尼迪提出的联邦援助提议。他随后表示，他曾告诉肯尼迪部长，他的“行为和言论”，包括散布有关疫苗的虚假信息，正在损害社区利益。

肯尼迪是一位直言不讳的疫苗怀疑论者，他在社交媒体上反击，指责沙皮罗散布恐慌，并“将传染病武器化”以谋取政治利益。他暗示，这些死亡病例可能是沙皮罗的一位“满怀希望的幕僚”为了佐证麻疹感染比实际情况更危险的说法而“完全捏造”的。

兰开斯特县的两例死亡病例均为婴儿，该县验尸官表示，但他的办公室对其中一例死亡是否由麻疹引起提出异议。一名新生儿死于脾脏破裂，验尸官斯蒂芬·迪亚曼托尼博士称，他的法医病理学家认定该死因并非病毒性疾病。

迪亚曼托尼告诉 CNN，第二起死亡事件是一名六周大的婴儿，他患有一种名为阿米什致命性小头畸形的严重遗传疾病，死因是麻疹。

这是一则突发新闻，我们将持续更新。

CNN的迪尔德丽·麦克菲利普斯对本报道亦有贡献。