A six-week-old child in Pennsylvania died from measles, the Lancaster County coroner has determined, following two measles-related deaths in the county last week.
asserted
coroner → die → county
The determination comes as Lancaster county faces a growing measles outbreak.
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county → come → outbreak
Stephen Diamantoni, the county coroner, confirmed the death to multiple news outlets and said that the infant had Amish lethal microcephaly.
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infant → confirm → microcephaly
Children with the condition typically live to only five to six months, and the condition can make children more vulnerable to respiratory infections.
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children → live → infections
State health officials have not confirmed whether the six-week-old was one of the two deaths announced last week, according to the New York Times.
uncertain
old → confirm → Times
The first death, on 14 August, involved an infant whose mother had measles and transmitted it to the child.
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mother → involve → child
In that case, the coroner told WGAL that a ruptured spleen, not measles, was the cause of death.
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spleen → tell → death
Measles, however, was listed on the newborn’s death certificate, the outlet reported.
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outlet → list → certificate
The Atlantic reported that the parents believe their baby died from measles.
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baby → report → measles
Pennsylvania has counted nearly 400 measles cases across 28 counties, nearly half of which are in southern Lancaster county.
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half → count → county
Most of the cases reported to state health authorities are in adults between 18 and 49.
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Most → report → 18
At a news conference last week, Pennsylvania governor Josh Shapiro and state secretary of health Debra Bogen said two Lancaster county residents had died in cases described as “measles-associated”.
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residents → say → cases
They did not provide further details, citing privacy laws and respect for the deceased and their families.
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They → provide → deceased
The recent deaths have fueled a dispute between Shapiro, a Democrat, and health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr.
Officials strongly suggested that the two deaths were caused by measles when they announced them, but the distinction of “measles-associated” led some on the right to dispute whether measles was actually the cause.
Shapiro had criticized Kennedy, a longtime vaccine skeptic, over his history of misinformation surrounding vaccines.
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Shapiro → fuel → vaccines
The governor said that Kennedy’s rhetoric has not helped contain the measles epidemic, which has pushed US cases to the highest number in over three decades.
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which → say → decades
Kennedy responded by suggesting Shapiro’s side had fabricated the deaths in an effort to blame the health secretary.
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side → respond → secretary
He also accused Democrats of using tactics similar to those employed during the pandemic to counter critics and encourage vaccination.
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He → accuse → vaccination
“The performance was a replay of the Democrats’ Covid playbook: fear-mongering, misinformation, finger-pointing, and the weaponization of infectious disease fears for political gain,” Kennedy wrote on social media.
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Kennedy → write → media
As of Monday, top US health officials and government agencies were not including the two recent measles-associated deaths in their official counts.
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officials → include → counts
Kennedy also gave an incorrect number of measles deaths during a recent interview with Fox News.
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Kennedy → give → News
Debra Houry, the former CDC chief medical officer, and Demetre Daskalakis, the former director of the CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, criticized, in a piece for Stat News, the way health and administration officials have turned deadly diseases into political talking points to be debated.
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officials → criticize → points
“Chicken noodle soup and vitamin A are not substitutes for vaccination, as the secretary of health claimed in 2022 while standing in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, the epicenter of the current outbreak,” the pair wrote.
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pair → claim → outbreak
“The best way to protect children is neither complicated nor new: provide clear information and make it easier for families to get vaccinated.”
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families → protect → information
The Aporia
