“Governor Shapiro has chosen to politicize this outbreak instead of implementing a unified public health response. He continues to point the finger at me and the federal government.
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Two Unvaccinated Pennsylvanians Die of Measles — the First U.S. Measles Deaths of 2026 and the State's First in 35 Years — and the Health Secretary Says the Outbreak Is Under Control and Blames the Lockdowns
August 26, 2026
On August 25, 2026 the Pennsylvania Department of Health confirmed that two unvaccinated people in Lancaster County had died of measles. They are the first measles-associated deaths reported anywhere in the United States in 2026 and the first in Pennsylvania since 1991. The state has recorded 393 cases across 28 counties this year — its worst measles year since 1992 — with roughly half of them in Lancaster County and about one in five patients hospitalized. The deaths landed on a health secretary who built his public career on vaccine skepticism. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. called Gov. Josh Shapiro to offer federal staff for the outbreak response; Shapiro turned the offer down and told him the administration's rhetoric was itself part of the problem. A day later, at a school-nutrition conference, Kennedy said the United States is "doing a better job than any country in the world at controlling the measles outbreak" and attributed the surge to COVID-era lockdowns rather than to falling vaccination rates. Sen. Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD) called for Kennedy to resign or be fired. Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) — a physician who chairs the Senate health committee and who voted to confirm Kennedy — did not call for his removal but wrote that "no one needs to die from measles in 2026" and blamed misinformation and misguided policy. The deaths come two weeks after Trump signed an executive order cutting the childhood vaccine schedule and splitting the MMR shot into three separate doses, an order Cassidy had already called "a stupid thing to do."
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“These are tragedies, and four families are grieving. Pennsylvania was experiencing the worst measles outbreak in the country with 693 recorded cases in 38 of 67 counties. This serious situation continues to be made worse by RFK Jr. playing games with public health and safety.
“The announcement appears to have been premature, and the deaths may even have been altogether fabricated by one of the Governor's hopeful staffers.
“I have thoroughly reviewed the case investigation information and sadly can confirm that there were two recent measles-associated deaths in Lancaster County.
“Unfortunately at a time where I needed the top 'health expert' in the nation to responsibly work with us to deal with this outbreak, he instead chose to go down a rabbit hole of conspiracy theories and false claims.
“They cannot find any measles deaths in Lancaster County.
“We're doing a better job than any country in the world at controlling the measles outbreak. This is a worldwide epidemic, and it's happening because of the lockdowns, because many kids did not get vaccinated during the lockdowns.
“No one needs to die from measles in 2026. Misinformation and misguided policies are leaving children unprotected against a disease we know how to prevent.
“RFK Jr.'s lies and conspiracy theories are making Marylanders sick. RFK Jr. must resign or be fired. Vaccines are safe and effective. Listen to your pediatrician.
“I was very, very blunt with him, and I made very clear that his actions and the rhetoric that's coming from this administration are having a negative impact on communities across America, particularly right here in Pennsylvania.
“Folks are spreading skepticism about things like the MMR vaccine without any evidence to back up their claims. There's real-life consequences to spreading misinformation. There's real-life consequences to scaring people and not relying on actual doctors and actual medical professionals to provide unbiased information to parents so that we can make reasonable decisions for our kids.