RFK Jr. Calls Pennsylvania Measles Deaths “Fabricated” as Coroner Disputes State’s Account
A public dispute between Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Pennsylvania officials escalated this week after the state’s first measles-related deaths in 35 years drew conflicting accounts from a county coroner, state health officials, and the CDC itself — a disagreement that’s unfolded as the United States records its worst year for measles cases since 1991.
What Pennsylvania Announced
The Pennsylvania Department of Health confirmed Tuesday, August 25, that two “measles-associated” deaths had occurred in Lancaster County, noting both individuals were unvaccinated — the state’s first measles-related deaths in 35 years. The department initially declined to provide further identifying details, citing patient privacy.
Additional information later emerged confirming one of the two deaths involved a newborn. According to Medical Daily, Pennsylvania confirmed that one of the two people whose deaths were labeled measles-associated was a newborn, information the state had initially withheld when it first announced the deaths.
The Coroner’s Dispute
Lancaster County Coroner Dr. Stephen Diamantoni publicly disputed the state’s characterization. According to Medical Daily, the coroner said the newborn died of a ruptured spleen shortly after birth, that the autopsy pathologist did not consider the death measles-related, and that no deaths attributed to measles had actually been referred to his office.
Diamantoni told reporters Wednesday that his office had no record of any measles-related deaths, according to CNN, even though state law requires that all measles deaths be reported to the coroner.
What “Measles-Associated” Actually Means
The dispute hinges partly on a technical distinction in public health terminology. According to Medical Daily, the state uses the term “measles-associated” when laboratory or epidemiologic evidence of measles is present, even if a coroner or medical certifier hasn’t specifically named measles as the immediate cause of death — a broader classification than a formal cause-of-death determination, and one that can create exactly the kind of disagreement now playing out between the state health department and the county coroner’s office.
Kennedy’s Response
Kennedy addressed the coroner’s comments directly in a Wednesday post on X, alleging that Pennsylvania had not given the CDC relevant information about the outbreak and suggesting the deaths could have been “fabricated,” according to Fox News. He went further in a follow-up post, accusing Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro of “fearmongering” and “the weaponization of infectious disease fears for political gain,” and suggesting the deaths may have been “altogether fabricated” by one of Shapiro’s “hopeful staffers” to support a narrative that measles infection is more dangerous than it actually is, according to CNN.
Kennedy had made similar comments the same day at an event in Florida, according to FactCheck.org, saying, “they cannot find any measles deaths in Lancaster County,” and adding, “The press is all covering this as if those measles deaths actually happened.”
Pennsylvania’s Response
Pennsylvania Health Secretary Dr. Debra Bogen pushed back directly on Kennedy’s claims. In a post on the Pennsylvania Department of Health’s X account, Bogen said she had “thoroughly reviewed the case investigation information and sadly can confirm that there were two recent measles-associated deaths in Lancaster County, which were reported to the CDC’s measles response team early Tuesday morning,” according to CNN. Bogen also said her staff meets regularly with the CDC, including as recently as that same afternoon, to discuss the state’s measles response, according to CIDRAP.
Gov. Shapiro addressed the dispute directly at a Tuesday news conference, saying he had spoken with Kennedy and “made very clear that his actions and the rhetoric coming from this administration are having a negative impact on communities across America, particularly right here in Pennsylvania,” according to CNN.
The CDC’s Position
The CDC weighed in publicly Thursday afternoon, saying in a statement posted to social media that it was working to determine what had actually occurred, according to CNN. The agency added: “These discrepancies raise important questions, particularly because the Governor’s Office has not provided CDC with information relevant to the outbreak and has declined our offers of assistance,” according to CIDRAP — a claim that stands in direct tension with Bogen’s own statement that her staff has been in regular contact with the CDC’s measles response team.
What Independent Medical Experts Have Said
Dr. Paul Offit, a prominent vaccine expert, told The Philadelphia Inquirer that the additional information from the coroner doesn’t provide much added context, and that based on his conversations with state health officials, he understood that “these patients would not have died were it not for measles,” according to CIDRAP.
Jess Steier, founder of Unbiased Science, was critical of Kennedy’s response to the situation. “It baffles me that Secretary Kennedy chose this moment to do anything other than underscore the critical importance of MMR [measles, mumps, and rubella] vaccination in the name of public health, to prevent further tragedies,” Steier told CIDRAP.
Not every outside expert was fully aligned with the state’s handling of the situation either. Amesh Adalja, an infectious disease physician, expressed disappointment with how Pennsylvania’s government communicated about the deaths, according to CIDRAP, suggesting the state’s initial lack of transparency around details like the victims’ ages created what CIDRAP characterized as an “unforced error” that contributed to the dispute’s escalation.
Prior History Between Kennedy and Measles Death Reporting
This isn’t the first time Kennedy has publicly disputed measles death reports during his tenure as HHS secretary. According to FactCheck.org, when two children died of measles complications in Texas the previous year, Kennedy — along with activists connected to his former nonprofit, Children’s Health Defense — baselessly alleged that the children had not actually died of measles, despite evidence to the contrary at the time.
FactCheck.org’s own review of the Pennsylvania case found the situation “less clear” than the earlier Texas dispute: one of the two deaths does appear to involve an infant who tested positive for measles and died of a ruptured spleen, and while it’s possible the rupture was related to a measles infection, the coroner has said the autopsy pathologist determined measles was not involved. No detailed information about the second death has been made public.
The Scale of the Broader Outbreak
This dispute is unfolding against the backdrop of a genuinely severe national measles resurgence. According to Medical Daily, Pennsylvania has confirmed 424 measles cases so far this year, including 94 in the past week alone and 73 hospitalizations. Nationally, the CDC has recorded 2,777 measles cases this year — the highest total since 1991, according to Medical Daily, which also reported that measles had reached Pittsburgh for the first time since 2019, with the CDC adding 211 cases in a single week nationally.
FAQ
What are Pennsylvania’s two measles-associated deaths? Two deaths in unvaccinated individuals in Lancaster County, including a newborn who died of a ruptured spleen shortly after testing positive for measles, according to the state health department’s classification.
Why does the Lancaster County coroner dispute this? The coroner said the autopsy pathologist did not consider the newborn’s death measles-related and that no deaths attributed to measles have been formally referred to his office, despite state law requiring such reporting.
What did RFK Jr. say about the deaths? He alleged on social media that the deaths may have been “fabricated,” accused Gov. Josh Shapiro of “fearmongering” and political “weaponization” of the issue, and questioned whether Pennsylvania had provided sufficient information to the CDC.
How has Pennsylvania responded to Kennedy’s claims? Health Secretary Debra Bogen said she personally reviewed the case investigations and confirmed the deaths, and stated her staff has been in regular contact with the CDC’s measles response team — directly disputing the CDC’s claim that Pennsylvania withheld information.
How severe is the current measles outbreak? Nationally, the CDC has recorded 2,777 cases this year, the highest total since 1991. Pennsylvania alone has confirmed 424 cases, including 73 hospitalizations.
Conclusion
This dispute reflects a genuinely unresolved factual disagreement — over what actually caused a newborn’s death, and separately, over whether Pennsylvania adequately communicated with federal health officials — playing out publicly between a sitting HHS secretary and a state government during the country’s worst measles year in over three decades. With the CDC saying it’s still working to determine what happened, Pennsylvania’s health secretary standing firmly behind her department’s case reviews, and independent experts split on how well either side has handled the situation, the underlying question of exactly how the newborn died appears likely to remain contested even as the broader measles outbreak continues expanding nationally.
Sources: Fox News, CNN, CIDRAP, Medical Daily, FactCheck.org, 6abc Philadelphia (reporting dated August 26-29, 2026).