A newborn was among two people in Lancaster County who died of measles-related complications, according to Pennsylvania health officials. In a statement, the state health department said the infant's death is under investigation by the local coroner's office.
Officials said Tuesday that both individuals were unvaccinated but declined to provide any further details citing health privacy concerns.
Lancaster County Coroner Dr. Stephen Diamantoni later told local reporters that his office was investigating the death of an infant who tested positive for measles. Diamantoni said an autopsy found that the baby died of a ruptured spleen, not the virus, though measles was detected in the postmortem analysis.
The comments set off a political firestorm Wednesday that culminated in a tense back and forth between Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Shapiro accused Kennedy of spreading dangerous misinformation while Kennedy accused Shapiro of fearmongering — casting doubt as to whether the recent Lancaster County deaths were genuinely associated with the measles.
A health department spokesperson said Thursday the department "uses the term 'measles-associated' when laboratory or epidemiologic evidence of measles is present, but the disease may not be assessed by the medical certifier or coroner to be the immediate cause of death."
Kennedy reposted a statement from Lancaster County Commissioner Josh Parsons on X, in which Parsons asserted that the phrase "measles-associated deaths" does not mean either individual died from measles. Parsons also questioned whether the second death occurred at all.
"The announcement appears to have been premature, and the deaths may even have been altogether fabricated by one of the Governor's hopeful staffers," the Secretary claimed.
Kennedy's comments seemingly prompted a response from Pennsylvania Health Secretary Dr. Debra Bogen, who reiterated that the deaths were associated with measles in a statement.
"As a pediatrician with more than 30 years of caring for children, I have thoroughly reviewed the case investigation information and sadly can confirm that there were two recent measles-associated deaths in Lancaster County," Bogen said.
"DOH's Epidemiology team thoroughly investigated and verified both individuals tested positive for measles. The information was not reported to the public until the results of the epidemiological investigations were confirmed," Bogen said.
She also corrected Kennedy's assertion that the Lancaster County coroner's office must be notified of "all" measles deaths.
"Under state law, PA DOH is not required to report deaths to coroners," Bogen said.
Meanwhile, cases of measles across Pennsylvania continue to spread. Butler and Westmoreland counties each reported one new case this week. Allegheny County reported its first case last week. Most of the state's more than 420 reported cases of measles have been located in Lancaster County.
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