US Records First Measles Deaths of 2026

Two unvaccinated residents of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, have died from measles, marking the state’s first deaths from the disease in 35 years and the first measles fatalities in the United States this year.

The United States is experiencing its highest number of measles cases in more than three decades, with 2,777 confirmed cases reported so far this year. Pennsylvania has recorded 393 cases across 28 counties, including 185 in Lancaster County.

The resurgence comes amid declining vaccination rates. In Lancaster County, 87.6% of kindergarten students had received the required two doses of the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine during the 2025–2026 school year, well below the 95% vaccination level needed to provide herd immunity.

Two doses of the MMR vaccine provide 97% protection against measles. Pennsylvania Secretary of Health Debra Bogen said that because the disease had largely been eliminated in the state for more than three decades, many people were unfamiliar with it and did not fully understand its potential severity.

The number of US measles cases this year is the highest in a single year since the major resurgence between 1989 and 1991, when 55,000 infections and 123 deaths were recorded.

(Reuters, Max)