Pennsylvania reports fifth measles-associated death as outbreak grows

Sept 30 (Reuters) - Pennsylvania health officials ‌said on Wednesday ​an ​unvaccinated person in Lancaster County died after contracting measles, raising the state's death toll from the disease this year to five.

The state ‌has been hardest hit by the outbreak, with 943 cases across ⁠39 counties, up from 903 on Monday. Its first two deaths, reported in August, were the ‌first in the US this ‌year, followed by two more in mid-September.

However, the CDC had confirmed two measles-related deaths nationwide as of Tuesday, a gap that has fueled a dispute ​between Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro and US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. over how many fatalities were directly caused by the virus.

The CDC said ⁠earlier this month it had shifted to using mortality data from the National Center for Health Statistics for ​its national measles death count, rather than relying on state health departments, a change that has drawn scrutiny.

Pennsylvania continues to report ​a "measles-associated death" when an individual with an active ‌case of measles dies and meets a set of criteria.

Those include death within 30 days of symptom onset in someone with ⁠clinical and laboratory evidence of measles, unless the death was due to an unrelated cause such as an accident. Exposure history and supporting medical records are also considered.

The US ⁠has recorded 3,659 confirmed measles cases this year as of September 24, according to CDC data.

The ​US Department of Health and Human Services, which oversees the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

Measles is highly contagious but ‌preventable with the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine, which is 97% effective after two doses. However, President Donald Trump last ‌month criticized the MMR vaccine and called for the combination shot to be split ⁠into three separate shots.

A Reuters/Ipsos poll ‌this month also found ​that Americans' trust in vaccines for childhood diseases, including measles, has fallen in recent years.

(Reporting by Kamal Choudhury in Bengaluru; Editing by ‌Vijay Kishore)

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