Health Secretary Kennedy spreads anti-vaccine claims after Pennsylvania measles deaths
Two unvaccinated Pennsylvanians, including a newborn, died from measles, prompting Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to post anti-vaccine messages and question the deaths on social media.
Two measles-related deaths were confirmed in Pennsylvania, the first such fatalities in the state in 35 years and the first reported in the United States in 2026. Both victims were unvaccinated residents of Lancaster County, and one was a newborn who died shortly after birth from a ruptured spleen. State officials said the coroner did not link the spleen rupture directly to measles, while vaccine expert Paul Offit noted that the virus can cause spleen enlargement and rupture, and said the deaths would likely not have occurred without measles infection.
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a known opponent of vaccines, used his personal X account to criticize the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine and shared a link to an anti-vaccine website. He also attacked Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro and blamed the Biden administration for declining vaccination rates. The following day, Kennedy suggested on his official X account that the deaths might have been fabricated, citing a tweet from a local Republican commissioner who claimed no measles deaths had been reported in the county.
Officials and medical experts have refuted Kennedy’s claims. The Lancaster County coroner indicated uncertainty about the cause of the newborn’s death, and Offit emphasized that the measles virus is a plausible cause of the complications observed. The incident occurs amid a nationwide measles surge, with nearly 2,800 cases reported this year, the highest total since 1991.