Pennsylvania’s measles outbreak is spreading, with 55 new cases reported since Wednesday | Pennsylvania

The Pennsylvania Department of Health (DOH) announced Friday that 55 new cases of measles have been reported in the state since Wednesday, as officials continue efforts to contain an outbreak of the disease that has spread to dozens of counties.

In a news release, the Department of Health said 890 cases of measles have been confirmed in 39 counties across the state so far for the year. The outbreak resulted in 173 hospitalizations in the state and four measles-associated deaths, the release added.

State health officials said less than 1% of reported cases involved people who were vaccinated against measles. And according to state data, 31% of cases are in people under 18 years old.

In addition to announcing that 55 new cases had been reported in a two-day period beginning Wednesday, the Department of Health said it was “working proactively with residents, community organizations and health care providers to combat the measles outbreak… through access to evidence-based information and access to the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine.”

The update on Friday’s measles outbreak in Pennsylvania came after Trump administration Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr – a long-time vaccine skeptic – sought to sow doubt about the disease-related deaths in the state, writing on social media that they “may even have been entirely fabricated” for political reasons.

In August, the new director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ordered agency staff not to include two measles-associated deaths reported by Pennsylvania in its national tally, as the agency said it was reviewing “additional information” regarding the deaths.

Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, has seen the highest number of cases in the state for the year so far, with 359 positive cases, according to state data.

State health officials said that since “the outbreak began in late April,” they have “administered more than 5,300 MMR vaccines at 165 pop-up vaccination clinics in affected communities.”

Dozens of additional vaccination clinics are also planned in the coming weeks and months, based on community interest and needs, they said.

In total, health center staff across the state have administered more than 7,900 doses of MMR vaccine to Pennsylvania residents this year, according to the release. He added that health care providers across the state have also seen a “surge in interest from residents seeking the MMR vaccine.”

The Health Ministry said Friday that “the best protection against measles remains being fully vaccinated” and said the MMR vaccine “boosts a person’s immune system and provides 97% lifetime protection.”

Measles is a highly contagious virus that can cause serious health complications. The Health Ministry said deaths from measles, although rare, “occur in one to three patients per 1,000 cases.”

It was declared eliminated from the United States in 2000, but the virus has spread more recently in undervaccinated communities.

According to the CDC, measles can spread to other people through coughing and sneezing — and it can survive for up to two hours in an airspace after an infected person leaves an area.

Symptoms usually begin seven to 14 days after infection, the CDC says. They may include a high fever, cough, runny nose, and red, watery eyes, followed by a rash that spreads throughout the body.

The CDC says two doses of the MMR vaccine “provide the best protection against measles.”

According to CDC data, as of September 24, more than 3,659 confirmed cases of measles have been reported in the United States for the year. For all of 2025, a total of 2,289 confirmed cases of measles have been reported nationwide.