Measles outbreak: Pennsylvania reports fourth US death

Pennsylvania health authorities have confirmed a fourth measles-related death in the United States as the country faces its largest outbreak of the vaccine-preventable disease in decades.

State health officials said all four people who died were unvaccinated. Local medical examiners said the latest death was an 18-year-old, following deaths involving two infants who were too young to be vaccinated and a 40-year-old.

Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro said Tuesday that the state has recorded 693 measles cases. More than 3,290 cases have been recorded across the United States since early 2026.

The deaths have become part of a dispute between Shapiro and US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Shapiro accused Kennedy of worsening the situation by encouraging vaccine skepticism and alleged that Kennedy ordered Centers for Disease Control and Prevention officials not to report the Pennsylvania deaths.

Kennedy denied the allegation and accused Shapiro of politicizing the outbreak. Kennedy said he had repeatedly stated that the MMR vaccine is the most effective way to prevent measles.

Measles can cause fever, respiratory symptoms and skin rashes, and can lead to complications including pneumonia, brain inflammation and death. The disease was considered eliminated in the United States in 2000 through vaccination, but has returned in recent years amid falling vaccination rates and mistrust of health authorities.