CDC Sends Disease Detective to Pennsylvania Measles Outbreak

The pennsylvania measles outbreak has drawn federal boots on the ground. A CDC epidemiologist — a so-called disease detective from the agency’s Epidemic Intelligence Service — is heading to Pennsylvania this week after the state formally requested help fighting the worst measles outbreak the country has seen in roughly 35 years.

Confirmed cases in the state have reached at least 1,222, with 225 hospitalizations and six deaths, according to NBC News. It is the first time the CDC has deployed someone on the ground in the state for this outbreak, and the agency is also providing nearly $4 million in support funding.

A State Asks for Help

Pennsylvania formally requested assistance through Epi-Aid, the Epidemic Intelligence Service program that lends short-term technical experts to states during public health emergencies. A CDC spokesperson said the scientist is expected to arrive later this week to help investigate the outbreak and strengthen response efforts.

The outbreak is spreading: a measles case reported by Georgia health officials this week was tied to the Pennsylvania cluster, and more than 4,000 infections have been reported in nearly every state in the contiguous U.S. this year.

A Dispute Over the Death Toll

The response has been shadowed by a public feud. Governor Josh Shapiro blasted what he called the Trump administration’s “incompetence,” while Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. previously claimed Pennsylvania’s measles death toll was “fabricated.” The two sides disagree over how measles-associated deaths should be defined and counted.

Through it all, the CDC continues to recommend the MMR vaccine as the most effective way to prevent measles — a message public health officials say is being drowned out by vaccine hesitancy and misinformation driving the worst national caseload in 35 years.

Source: NBC News