Pennsylvania has surpassed ۱,۰۰۰ measles cases this year, state health officials calculate, making it the largest state outbreak in more than three decades. The benchmark comes as neighboring New York declared a state of emergency about measles rates there.
Pennsylvania’s health department said Monday ۱,۰۰۴ cases of measles had been confirmed. Five Pennsylvania residents have died after contracting the disease, with ۱۹۸ hospitalizations.
Lancaster county, with sizeable Amish and Mennonite populations, remains the hardest hit, with ۳۹۱ cases, according to official figures. Cases numbers have risen over the past three months, with the highest number of infections in the ۲۴-۴۹ age range.
The numbers, however, are not included in a CDC count due to an ongoing dispute between Pennsylvania’s governor, Josh Shapiro, and the US health secretary, Robert F Kennedy Jr over how to classify measles-related mortality.
Shapiro has called Kennedy “incompetent”, and Kennedy has publicly questioned whether the state’s recorded fatalities were directly caused by measles. The CDC – which Kennedy oversees – currently lists two measles deaths in the US this year.
Shapiro has expanded access to the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine in affected communities.
“I want every Pennsylvanian to know this: measles does not care about your county, your faith, or your social circle,” he said in August. “I urge everyone to take this seriously and to discuss any concerns with their trusted health care provider.”
In New York state, governor Kathy Hochul declared a state of emergency on Monday as well, citing ۱۰۸ cases in the state as of ۳ October.
Ohio, which also shares a border with Pennsylvania, has also reported advancing numbers of cases, with more than ۲۰۰ this year. Like in Pennsylvania, Ohio has a significant Amish population.
The US is enduring its worst year for measles since ۱۹۹۱. As of ۱ October, the CDC reported ۳,۸۸۷ confirmed cases this year, along with the highest number of measles-associated deaths in decades.
In addition to Pennsylvania, outbreaks have been reported in several states, including Texas and Utah, as well as South Carolina, which had the largest outbreak with ۹۹۷ cases reported.
Health officials in Pennsylvania have said the state’s current outbreak started in April, west of Philadelphia and attributed the outbreak to low vaccination rates.
According to the Associated Press, the most recent outbreak to surpass ۱,۰۰۰ cases occurred in New York City in the early ۱۹۹۰s. That outbreak infected more than ۴,۵۰۰ people. During the ۱۹۸۹ and ۱۹۹۱ resurgences, ۵۵,۰۰۰ infections and ۱۲۳ deaths were recorded, according to Reuters.
The domestic US spread of measles was eliminated in ۲۰۰۰ by high vaccination rates, but those rates have fallen in recent years to below the ۹۵% coverage needed to prevent outbreaks.
In November, international health officials will meet to determine if the US and Mexico have lost their measles-free status.
