Fifth unvaccinated person dies of measles as CDC undercounts death toll
A measles outbreak in the US has reached its highest case count since 1991, but the CDC officially reports only two deaths even as a fifth unvaccinated person has died in Pennsylvania.
Measles was declared eliminated in the United States in 2000 due to widespread vaccination. In recent years, however, misinformation spread by anti-vaccine activists—including current Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.—has contributed to declining vaccination rates and record-high vaccine exemptions, allowing the highly contagious virus to resurge.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has recorded at least 3,659 measles cases so far this year, surpassing last year's total and marking the highest case count since 1991. Despite this, under Kennedy's influence, the CDC has resisted reporting deaths occurring in Pennsylvania, instead changing the criteria used to determine what qualifies as a measles-related death. The agency currently reports only two deaths, and it remains unclear which two cases are being counted.
Pennsylvania races to vaccinate residents
Meanwhile, health officials in Pennsylvania are working urgently to protect residents amid the deadly outbreak. The state health department reports that nurses have administered more than 8,500 doses of the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine this year, including more than 5,500 doses given at pop-up clinics set up in outbreak-affected areas.
On Wednesday, the health department reiterated that full vaccination remains the best protection against measles. The two-dose MMR vaccine strengthens a person's immune system and provides 97 percent lifetime protection against the disease.
