The Pennsylvania department of health (DOH) announced on Friday that 55 new measles cases had been reported in the state since Wednesday, with officials continuing efforts to contain an outbreak of the disease that has spread across dozens of counties.
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that → announce → counties
In a news release, the DOH said that 890 measles cases had been confirmed across 39 counties in the state so far for the year.
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cases → say → year
The outbreak had resulted in 173 hospitalizations in the state and four measles-associated deaths, the statement added.
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statement → result → state
State health officials said fewer than 1% of reported cases have occurred among individuals vaccinated against measles.
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% → say → measles
And according to the state data, 31% of the cases are among people younger than 18.
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% → accord → 18
In addition to announcing that 55 new cases had been reported during a two-day period beginning on Wednesday, the DOH said it was “proactively working with residents, community organizations and healthcare providers to combat the measles outbreak … through access to fact-based information and access to the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine”.
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it → announce → vaccine
The update about the measles outbreak on Friday from Pennsylvania came after the Trump administration’s health secretary, Robert F Kennedy Jr – a longtime vaccine skeptic – has sought to cast doubt on deaths related to the disease in the state, writing on social media that they “may even have been altogether fabricated” for political reasons.
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they → come → reasons
In August, the new director of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ordered agency staff not to include two measles-associated deaths reported by Pennsylvania in its national tally, as the agency said it was reviewing “additional information” regarding the deaths.
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it → order → deaths
Pennsylvania’s Lancaster county has recorded the highest number of cases in the state for the year so far, with 359 positive cases, according to state data.
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county → record → data
State health officials said that since “the outbreak began in late April” they had “administered more than 5,300 MMR vaccinations at 165 pop-up vaccination clinics in the affected communities”.
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they → say → communities
Dozens of additional vaccine clinics are also scheduled in the coming weeks and months, based on community interest and need, they said.
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they → schedule → interest
In total, state health center staff have administered more than 7,900 MMR vaccine doses to residents across Pennsylvania this year, according to the statement.
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staff → administer → statement
It added that healthcare providers across the state have also seen a “surge of interest from residents seeking MMR vaccinations”.
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providers → add → vaccinations
The DOH said on Friday that the “best protection against measles remains getting fully vaccinated” and states that the MMR vaccine “boosts a person’s immune system and provides 97% lifetime protection.”
Measles is a highly contagious virus that can cause serious health complications.
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that → say → complications
The DOH said that death from measles, though rare, “occurs in one to three patients per 1,000 cases”.
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death → say → cases
It had been declared eliminated from the US in 2000, but the virus has more recently spread in under-vaccinated communities.
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virus → declare → communities
According to the CDC, measles can spread to others through coughing and sneezing – and it can live for up to two hours in an airspace after an infected person leaves an area.
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person → accord → area
Symptoms usually begin seven to 14 days after infection, the CDC says.
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CDC → begin → infection
They can include high fever, cough, runny nose and red, watery eyes, followed by a rash that spreads down the body.
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that → include → body
The CDC advises that two doses of the MMR vaccine “provide the best protection against measles”.
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doses → advise → measles
According to data from the CDC, as of 24 September more than 3,659 confirmed measles cases have been reported in the US so far for the year.
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cases → accord → year
For all of 2025, a total of 2,289 confirmed measles cases were reported nationwide.
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total → confirm → cases
The Aporia
