Pennsylvania measles cases rise to 1,004 as outbreak spreads

Oct 5 (Reuters) – Pennsylvania’s health department reported 1,004 measles cases as of Monday, as the state grapples with a fast-growing outbreak.

Five Pennsylvania residents have died after contracting the highly contagious disease, as cases in the US reach their highest level in more than three decades.

• The Pennsylvania measles cases include 198 hospitalizations, according to the health department’s website

• Lancaster county remains the hardest-hit area in the state with 391 cases

• All five people who have died from the disease in Pennsylvania this year were unvaccinated

• The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has confirmed only two measles-related deaths in the country this year, without naming the states

• The CDC has recorded 3,887 measles cases in 2026 so far — the most since the major resurgence between 1989 and 1991, when 55,000 infections and 123 ​deaths were recorded

• The CDC has said it was working with state epidemiologists on a standard definition for measles-related deaths

• Measles is a highly contagious viral disease but preventable with the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine, which is 97% effective after two doses

(Reporting by Christy Santhosh in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar)