The Pennsylvania Department of Health has conditioned its request for emergency federal disease experts on the U.S. State health secretary Debra Bogen warned CDC director Erica Schwartz that Pennsylvania will rescind its request for an Epidemic Intelligence Service deployment if the federal agency excludes the fatalities from its national tally.
The Dispute Over Measles Fatality Data
Kennedy Jr., according to Reuters reporting. Kennedy has instructed the CDC not to include the Pennsylvania fatalities in national counts, casting doubt on whether the deaths stemmed from the virus or alternative causes. Disease experts characterize this intervention as an unusual move by a federal health secretary that risks minimizing public perception of the disease.
In a letter sent to the CDC director on Wednesday evening, Bogen stated that the agency’s refusal to publicly recognize the deaths undermines the state’s response. HHS spokesperson Grace Davis Jamison countered in a statement that the CDC had not received the request through normal channels and characterized federal outbreak assistance as separate from fatality tabulation. Jamison stated that the agency will not submit to political conditions regarding critical public health assistance.
Outbreak Spread and Vaccination Trends
Pennsylvania’s measles outbreak has expanded to more than 700 confirmed cases across 37 counties, alongside four measles-associated deaths, based on state health data. When the state announced its first two fatalities on August 25, the virus had sickened 393 people across 28 counties. Matthew Ferrari, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Dynamics at Penn State, noted that the actual spread could be ten times larger than official tallies.
Vaccination rates appear to be slowing across the state. Health department records show that the state administered more than 3,500 doses of the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine in August, but that number dropped to around 1,100 doses for the first half of September. The MMR vaccine provides 97% protection against infection after two doses.
Did you know? Two doses of the MMR vaccine provide 97% protection against measles infection, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Health.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a CDC Epi-Aid?
An Epi-Aid is a form of short-term emergency assistance where the CDC sends disease experts to the site of an outbreak for one to three weeks to support state and local health departments.
Why is there a dispute between Pennsylvania and federal health officials?
The disagreement centers on whether the CDC will recognize four measles-associated deaths reported by Pennsylvania. U.S. Kennedy Jr. instructed the agency not to include the fatalities in national tallies, prompting state officials to condition their request for federal field assistance on the inclusion of those deaths.
How large is the measles outbreak in Pennsylvania?
The outbreak has grown to more than 700 confirmed cases across 37 counties and four associated deaths, though infectious disease experts note the true number of infections could be significantly higher.
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