Pennsylvania Measles Cases Reach 890 After 55 New Infections

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, United States — The state's Department of Health said Friday that 55 new measles cases were confirmed in a two-day span beginning Wednesday, pushing the 2026 statewide total to 890 confirmed cases across 39 counties, according to a department news release cited by The Guardian.

How many people have been hospitalized or died?

The outbreak has produced 173 hospitalizations and four measles-associated deaths in Pennsylvania so far this year, the health department said. State data show that fewer than 1% of the confirmed cases occurred in people who had been vaccinated against measles, and 31% of cases are in people younger than 18.

Where is the outbreak spreading?

Cases now span 39 of Pennsylvania's 67 counties, the department reported, though the release did not break out county-level case counts in the material reviewed. The two-day jump of 55 cases indicates the outbreak is still expanding rather than plateauing, based on the pace of the department's own tally.

Why is the vaccination rate among cases so low?

State health officials said the near-total absence of vaccinated individuals among the confirmed cases underscores the role of MMR vaccination in preventing infection. The department said it is "proactively working with residents, community organizations and healthcare providers to combat the measles outbreak" through what it called access to fact-based information and to the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine, according to the release cited by the Guardian.

Why is there a dispute over the death toll?

The update from Harrisburg followed public comments from US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a longtime vaccine skeptic, who wrote on social media that the Pennsylvania deaths "may even have been altogether fabricated" for political reasons, the Guardian reported. In August, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's new director ordered agency staff not to include two measles-associated deaths reported by Pennsylvania in the national tally, with the CDC saying it was reviewing "additional information" regarding those deaths, according to the same report. Pennsylvania's own count of four deaths has not been withdrawn by the state health department.

What is Pennsylvania doing to contain the spread?

The Department of Health said its current response centers on expanding MMR vaccine access and coordinating with community organizations and healthcare providers across the affected counties. The department did not specify in the material reviewed whether new mandates, school-entry rules or quarantine measures are under consideration beyond the vaccination push described in Friday's release.

What to watch

• Whether the CDC revises its national tally to include the two Pennsylvania deaths currently excluded pending review.
• Whether the rate of new cases — 55 in two days — continues, slows, or accelerates in the health department's next update.
• Whether additional counties beyond the current 39 report confirmed cases.
• Whether vaccination rates among new cases remain below 1%, which would continue to point toward under-vaccinated populations as the primary vector.

The Pennsylvania Department of Health has not set a date for its next public update, based on the material reviewed.