RFK Jr acknowledges measles death in PA after doubting it, accuses governor of politics

WASHINGTON, DC: After long-standing friction between Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr and the Pennsylvania administration over reported measles deaths, Kennedy on Friday, September 4, accepted that indeed a measles death occurred in the state.

Last month, Kennedy had accused the Pennsylvania governor of politicizing measles cases and said that the reported deaths in the state didn’t even occur.

Kennedy finally accepts measles death in PA

Robert F Kennedy’s acknowledgment of an infant death in Pennsylvania comes after he previously questioned the state’s reporting of two measles-related deaths amid a growing outbreak.

Kennedy pointed to findings from Lancaster County coroner Stephen Diamantoni, who confirmed on Friday that the six-week-old child died from measles last month.

“The Lancaster County Coroner has now publicly stated that measles caused only the second infant’s death,” Kennedy wrote on social media.

The child was born with Amish lethal microcephaly, a rare genetic disorder that can lead to viral infections and typically results in death within months of birth.

Kennedy fired back at Pennsylvania Gov Josh Shapiro (D) after Shapiro accused him of directing the CDC not to include the deaths in federal data.

Gov Josh Shapiro accuses RFK Jr of sowing doubt

Governor Josh Shapiro, in an X post, accused Robert F Kennedy Jr of sowing doubt around measles deaths and stopping the CDC from acknowledging the deaths in the database.

“Instead of listening to the real doctors and public health experts, RFK chose to sow doubt, play politics, direct the CDC not to acknowledge these deaths, and even accuse me of fabricating these tragedies,” Shapiro wrote.

“The facts emerging now demonstrate why CDC waited for the evidence rather than allowing political grandstanding to dictate its reporting,” Kennedy wrote in a response. “Governor Shapiro, by contrast, politicized these two tragic deaths before the underlying causes had been established.”

Kennedy had previously questioned whether the virus was the cause of the two deaths and asked that the cases reported by Pennsylvania’s health department be removed from the CDC’s national tally.

Pennsylvania health officials announced measles deaths

Pennsylvania health officials said last week that two unvaccinated people had died in connection with the state’s measles outbreak, which has infected 577 people and hospitalized 98.

Both cases involved infants, but the coroner said the causes of death were different.

In one case, a forensic pathologist found that the infant died from a ruptured spleen and did not say measles caused the death. In the second case, Coroner Stephen Diamantoni said a review of the 6-week-old infant’s medical records showed that measles caused the death.

“The National Center for Health Statistics does not currently have any death records from 2026 that indicate measles is the underlying cause, but will update as it receives and reviews submitted records,” Kennedy said, adding that the CDC will continue to update its records as more information becomes available.