Two unvaccinated residents of Pennsylvania have died from measles, marking the first US deaths from the disease this year. State health officials announced the deaths on Tuesday and said both people lived in Lancaster County, west of Philadelphia. No further details about the victims were released.
An outbreak that keeps growing
Pennsylvania has now recorded 393 measles cases across 28 counties in 2026, the third-highest total in the country, behind South Carolina's 670 and Utah's 526. Lancaster County alone accounts for 185 cases, making it one of the largest outbreaks in the United States this year. The county is home to a large plain community, including Amish and conservative Mennonite families, where vaccination rates are often lower.
The deaths are the first in Pennsylvania in 35 years. Statewide, about 70 people have been hospitalized during the outbreak. Nationally, the CDC has counted 2,777 cases so far this year, already surpassing the total for all of 2025 and making 2026 the worst year for measles since 1991.
Deaths from a preventable disease
The two deaths bring the US total to five measles fatalities in the last two years, more than the combined number reported in the previous three decades. Three people died in 2025: an adult in New Mexico and two girls in Texas.
"In 2026, decades after measles was eliminated in the United States, it is heartbreaking to witness deaths from a disease that is preventable with a vaccine that has been widely used since the 1970s," said Dr. David Racine, a Philadelphia pediatrician. "Today, pediatricians call on our leaders to encourage MMR vaccination to stop the spread of measles in our communities."
A gap in vaccination coverage
Public health officials point to falling vaccination rates as a driver of the resurgence. The share of US kindergarteners with an exemption from school vaccine requirements has more than doubled in five years, from 1.9% in 2020-2021 to 4% in 2025-2026. Measles is highly contagious: one infected person can pass the virus to up to nine out of ten unprotected people nearby.
The CDC recommends two doses of the MMR vaccine for full protection. Health authorities urge families to check their records, because outbreaks can spread quickly through schools, churches, and other close-knit groups.