Pennsylvania reports sixth measles death as state cases top 1,100

US measles total tops 4,080 across 42 outbreaks, CDC says

The sixth measles death in Pennsylvania’s 2026 outbreak was reported Monday by Franklin County Coroner James Conner, who identified the victim as an unvaccinated 39-year-old woman who “had several underlying conditions, including a past diagnosis of measles with treatment.” Conner said it was the first measles-related death in the county “for many years” and that the woman’s recent diagnosis met the Pennsylvania health department’s definition for inclusion in the outbreak’s toll.

The coroner’s office told NBC News through a spokesperson that the woman’s “primary cause of death was a probable acute cardiac event due to possible complications of the measles.” A spokesperson for the Pennsylvania health department said the agency was aware of the fatality and was “conducting a thorough review of the reported death.” Conner’s statement did not name the woman, citing the privacy of the victim and her relatives. “Families deserve the dignity to mourn in private,” the statement said. The statement also said: “We strongly encourage our medical community, first responders, and the public to follow the precautions set forth by” Pennsylvania state guidelines.

State officials on Monday reported 1,137 cases and 219 hospitalizations since the outbreak began west of Philadelphia in April. The state recorded 157 new cases over the previous week. One-third of the outbreak’s infections have occurred in people 18 or younger, and fewer than 1% of cases have occurred in fully vaccinated individuals, according to Pennsylvania figures. State authorities have attributed the outbreak’s spread to low vaccination rates.

The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention continues to list only two measles deaths nationally. The discrepancy reflects a dispute between Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro over how to classify measles-related fatalities. The CDC’s website, last updated Friday, shows 4,080 confirmed US measles infections across 42 separate outbreaks, the highest national total in decades and almost double the figure for all of 2025.

Earlier this month, New York Governor Kathy Hochul declared a state emergency in response to rising case numbers in her state. Ohio, South Carolina, Texas, and Utah have also seen significant increases, according to national case data.

Kennedy’s public statements on measles vaccination have varied over the past 18 months. In March 2025, he questioned the measles vaccine’s effectiveness, saying people should be able “to make that choice for themselves” about whether to take it. In August 2026, in response to rising case numbers, he told US families that parents “should get their children vaccinated.” The following month, at a Washington conference, he told anti-vaccine activists they had “a strong and steadfast friend at the White House.”

Pennsylvania’s state guidelines recommend two doses of the MMR (measles, mumps, and rubella) vaccine, or a combined MMRV vaccine that includes varicella protection, for children 12 and older. The CDC recommends the same vaccinations.

The first two fatalities in Pennsylvania’s outbreak, reported in August, were infants — one whose mother had measles during pregnancy, and a six-week-old who also had a rare genetic condition. Three subsequent deaths were women aged 40 and 20, and an 18-year-old, all of whom had coexisting health conditions, according to state reporting.