Pennsylvania Reports Two Deaths From Measles As US Cases Hit Highest Level Since 1991

Two people have died in connection with measles in Pennsylvania, state health officials announced on August 25.

The Pennsylvania Department of Health said the deaths were "related to measles." Both individuals lived in Lancaster County and had not received a measles vaccine. Officials declined to release further details, citing the need to protect the privacy of the deceased and their families.

Nationally, measles cases in 2026 have already surpassed the total recorded in 2025 and stand at the highest level since 1991. Pennsylvania has confirmed 393 cases so far this year. These are the first measles-related deaths reported in the United States in 2026, and Pennsylvania's first in 35 years, The Epoch Times reports.

In 2025, three people died from measles, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and others have said medical records showed those patients died from unrelated conditions or from health problems that were worsened by measles. Texas health officials attributed both children's deaths to measles and said neither had underlying conditions.

Kennedy and health officials have encouraged people to receive the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine. At the same time, Kennedy has stressed that vaccination should not be mandatory and that doctors should be prepared to treat measles cases.

Asked about the current measles situation earlier this month, Kennedy told reporters: "We've done better than any country in the world in controlling it." He also said that the outbreak has been almost entirely confined to religious communities that decline vaccination.