The Pennsylvania health department notified the CDC of two measles-associated deaths on the morning of August 25 and then made the news public on its website, according to the Pennsylvania official, who is close to Shapiro.
Pennsylvania did not share information about the circumstances of the deaths other than that the two individuals were unvaccinated. The CDC did not express concern over the information it had received and “signified its ongoing support for the (state health) department’s efforts,” the official said.
Kennedy called Shapiro by phone and offered federal support to assist with the state’s measles outbreak, the governor said at a press conference later that day. Shapiro said he thanked Kennedy and said the state had implemented an aggressive response, including existing support from CDC and HHS staff, but that he would let the secretary know if they needed more help.
Shapiro also said he told Kennedy that the health secretary’s past statements encouraged conspiracy theories and misinformation about the safety of vaccines, “having a negative impact on communities across America.”
Kennedy fired back on X the following day, August 26, accusing Shapiro of refusing to share information with the CDC and questioning whether the deaths were “altogether fabricated by one of the Governor’s hopeful staffers.”
That same day, the Pennsylvania health department discussed some details of the two cases with the CDC, the official close to Shapiro said. The CDC asked for health records that contained personally identifiable information about the deceased, which the state is legally barred from sharing, the Pennsylvania official said. The state offered to provide more de-identified information to CDC, but the federal agency has not signed off on the required paperwork, the official added.
A spokesperson for the Pennsylvania health department said the state has “provided all required epidemiological data to the CDC.”
On Friday, the CDC delayed its regular weekly update to its measles data website. When it updated the page on Sunday, it did not include the Pennsylvania fatalities but added an asterisk to its table on deaths with the following note: “At this time, available information does not establish whether measles caused or contributed to the (Pennsylvania) deaths or whether the individuals died from other causes while infected with measles.”
The CDC has not indicated what information it will use to determine whether the Pennsylvania deaths were caused by measles, since it is not working with the state health department in its investigation.
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