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CDC reports second measles death in US while excluding Pennsylvania deaths
theguardian.com • • general
Key Points:
- The CDC announced a second measles death in the US amid an outbreak affecting 47 states, with 3,659 confirmed cases as of September 24; however, the states of the deaths were not specified.
- Pennsylvania, the hardest-hit state with over 900 cases and four deaths, is not included in the CDC's national death count due to a dispute between the state's governor and the US health secretary.
- The CDC now relies on mortality data from the National Center for Health Statistics for measles death counts, moving away from state-reported data.
- Pennsylvania reported 114 new cases in the past week, with a third under 18 years old, 176 hospitalizations, and less than 1% of cases involving fully vaccinated individuals.
- The US has recorded more measles cases in 2023 than any year since 1991, despite the disease being declared eliminated in 2000; this comes amid significant staffing reductions at the CDC, which has lost a third of its workforce in the past year.
