US measles death toll rises to three as cases surge past 3,000

WASHINGTON, Sept 14 — A forty-year-old woman in the US state of Pennsylvania has died of measles, authorities said yesterday, bringing this year’s death toll from the highly contagious, preventable disease to three, amid declining vaccination rates.

The resident of Jefferson County died Saturday from complications associated with measles, the county’s coroner’s office said in a statement posted on Facebook.

The Washington Post, citing Coroner Greg Furlong, reported that the woman was unvaccinated.

“While cases of severe illness remain uncommon, this tragedy highlights that measles should not be taken lightly,” Jefferson County Chief Deputy Coroner Jason Stiver said.

Two measles-related deaths were recorded in August in the state’s Lancaster County, the first such deaths in the US in 2026 and the first in Pennsylvania in 35 years.

Lancaster is home to a large Amish population, a group of traditional agrarian people, who have lower vaccination rates than broader American society, and the victims were unvaccinated.

Measles was declared eliminated in the US in 2000, but it has made a strong comeback in recent years amid newfound vaccine skepticism and growing distrust of health authorities.

President Donald Trump’s health secretary, vaccine skeptic Robert Kennedy Jr, is accused of contributing to the crisis by stoking fears about the vaccine.

Nearly 3,300 confirmed measles cases have been recorded in the US in 2026, surpassing 2025’s total of 2,289 cases, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The previous high for a year was 1991, with 9,643 cases.

Early symptoms of the measles virus include fever, cough and runny nose, followed by a rash a few days later.

It can lead to more serious complications such as pneumonia and inflammation of the brain, which can cause severe lasting damage or even death. — AFP