Pennsylvania coroner confirms measles as cause of death for 6-week-old infant amid controversy

Lancaster County coroner Stephen Diamantoni said a six-week-old baby girl died of measles on Aug. 18, confirming the cause despite the infant’s pre-existing genetic condition, Amish lethal microcephaly, which typically limits survival to about six months. The death is one of two measles-related infant fatalities reported by Pennsylvania’s health department last week; the other involved a newborn boy whose mother was severely ill with measles at the time of delivery.

State officials, including Governor Josh Shapiro, cited the coroner’s report in social-media posts, emphasizing that the deaths were real and linked to measles. The reports have been contested by anti-vaccine activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who alleged the deaths might have been fabricated and urged the CDC to remove them from its public data. CDC director Erica Schwartz complied with the request, and the deaths are currently omitted from the agency’s public dashboard, though they remain in an internal database.

Medical experts, such as pediatric infectious-disease specialist Paul Offit, argue that measles likely contributed to both deaths. Offit noted that measles can enlarge the spleen, making it vulnerable to rupture—a condition observed in the newborn boy, whose pathologist cited a ruptured spleen as the immediate cause.

The controversy highlights tension between public-health authorities and anti-vaccine advocates over the reporting and interpretation of measles mortality data.