As measles cases approached 500 throughout Pennsylvania, the western part of the state near Allegheny County saw little change over the past week.
Nearly a week ago, on Aug. 25, Pennsylvania Department of Health announced two people from Lancaster County had died, saying the deaths were measles-associate. That sparked backlash from Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who accused Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro of falsifying the circumstances of the deaths. One of the deceased was a newborn baby who died of a ruptured spleen, according to the Lancaster County coroner, a complication that can be caused by measles, according to health experts.
Since then, the disease has continued to spread, with cases jumping by 100 in the past
seven days, bringing the total to nearly 500 as of Aug. 31, according to the state's measles dashboard.
Measles crept closer to Pittsburgh as Butler and Westmoreland counted their first infections on Aug. 25, though no additional cases had been reported in the counties bordering Allegheny as of Aug. 31. Data on the state's dashboard doesn't always reflect real-time reporting, as Butler's case still didn't appear on the dashboard as of Aug. 31 despite being diagnosed on Aug. 25.
Here's what to know about infections.
Are there measles cases in Pittsburgh?
There were no confirmed cases of measles among Pittsburgh or Allegheny County residents as of Aug. 31.
But earlier in the month, Allegheny County officials warned that residents may have been exposed to measles on Aug. 12 and Aug. 18 when an out-of-county individual who was diagnosed with the disease visited UPMC Children's Hospital Emergency Department.
The individual was isolating, and officials were reaching out to anyone who had been exposed, the county health department said.
Measles symptoms typically emerge 7–14 days after exposure, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Where are measles cases in Western Pennsylvania? How many are there?
One case of measles was diagnosed in Butler County on Aug. 25, according to Dr. Michael Fiorina, chief medical officer at Independence Health System. The case wasn't shown on the state's dashboard as of Aug. 31.
On Aug. 25, one case in Westmoreland County appeared on the state's measles dashboard.
Here's a look at cases throughout Western Pennyslvania:
- Allegheny: 0
- Armstrong: 0
- Beaver: 0
- Bedford: 2
- Blair: 0
- Butler: 1 (diagnosed on Aug. 25 according to hospital spokesperson; not reported by state dashboard as of Aug. 31)
- Cambria: 0
- Cameron: 0
- Clearfield: 10
- Crawford: 0
- Elk: 4
- Erie: 0
- Fayette: 0
- Forest: 0
- Greene: 0
- Indiana: 8
- Jefferson: 18
- Lawrence: 0
- McKean: 0
- Mercer: 3
- Somerset: 5
- Venango: 1
- Warren: 3
- Washington: 0
- Westmoreland: 1
How many measles cases are there in Pennsylvania?
Throughout Pennsylvania, there were 497 confirmed measles cases as of Aug. 31. Of those, 100 new cases were reported in the last week.
The majority of measles cases were in Lancaster County, which reported 227 infections. Chester had the second most cases as it reported 50 infections, while Mifflin reported 43.
Pennsylvania measles hospitalizations, deaths
Here's a breakdown of how measles is affecting those sickened by it in Pennsylvania, as well as how people are protecting themselves against it:
- Hospitalizations: 87 (18% of all cases)
- Children under 18 hospitalized: 24 (15% of cases among age group)
- Adults 18 and up hospitalized: 63 (18% of cases among age group)
- Deaths: 2
- Measles vaccines administered in 2026 by state DOH: 5,397
No infections had occurred in anyone who was fully vaccinated, meaning they had received two MMR shots, as of Aug. 31.
Where is measles transmission happening in Pennsylvania?
Community transmission of measles was taking place in Berks, Centre, Chester, Clearfield, Indiana, Jefferson, Lancaster, Mifflin, Snyder and York Counties as of Aug. 31.
Finch Walker is the Pittsburgh Connect Reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Contact Walker at FWalker@usatodayco.com. Instagram: @finchwalker_. X: @_finchwalker.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: PA measles cases near 500. See infection totals in Pittsburgh, Western PA
