Pennsylvania reports first two US measles deaths of 2026
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Two unvaccinated Lancaster County residents have died from measles, Pennsylvania health officials confirmed Tuesday. They are the first measles-related deaths in the United States this year, amid a 35-year high in national cases.
Key Facts
- Pennsylvania has recorded 393 measles cases in 2026, with roughly half in Lancaster County.
- Nationwide, there have been nearly 2,800 measles cases this year, up from 2,289 in 2025 and 285 in 2023.
- Nearly 20 percent of those infected with measles in Pennsylvania have been hospitalized.
- In Lancaster County, just 87 percent of incoming kindergarteners are fully vaccinated, below the 95 percent threshold needed to prevent outbreaks.
- Pennsylvania health staff have held 91 pop-up vaccination clinics and administered more than 4,100 vaccines statewide this year.
The Outbreak
The two deaths occurred in Lancaster County, which has a large Amish population. Pennsylvania has recorded 393 measles cases in 2026, with roughly half of those in Lancaster County. Only Utah and South Carolina have logged more cases this year. Nationwide, there have been nearly 2,800 measles cases this year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That is up from 2,289 cases in 2025 and well above the 285 cases seen in 2023.
Vaccination Gaps
Declining vaccination rates across the country are fueling the current outbreaks. New CDC data found that vaccination coverage among kindergartners decreased for all reported vaccines during the past school year. The number of parents seeking nonmedical vaccine exemptions for their children grew from 3.6 percent to a record high of 4.2 percent nationwide. In Lancaster County, just 87 percent of all incoming kindergarteners are fully vaccinated, below the 95 percent threshold needed to prevent measles outbreaks. Governor Josh Shapiro cited misinformation around vaccination as a main driver of cases in Pennsylvania.
Response
Shapiro called measles a “serious and growing problem” across the country in a press conference on Tuesday. He said illness and death from measles is completely preventable. State health department staff have held 91 pop-up vaccination clinics and administered more than 4,100 vaccines across the state this year. About a quarter of those vaccines have been given in Lancaster County. US health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said on CNN that the places facing measles outbreaks are “almost all religious communities that just don’t vaccinate.”
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Pennsylvania reports first two US measles deaths of 2026
