Coroner releases details of infants who died amid growing Pennsylvania measles outbreak

Lancaster County Coroner Dr. Stephen Diamantoni said Wednesday that the two measles-related deaths in Pennsylvania last month involved infants and that the virus itself caused one of the deaths. He said he told the CDC his conclusions, but CDC officials have not said whether they will count either death as measles-associated, and the agency’s website still carries a disclaimer about them. He released the information in response to a state right-to-know law request by WPMT-TV, Fox 43.

The two cases differed. Ivan Miller died Aug. 14 shortly after birth from a ruptured spleen, according to Diamantoni. His office performed an autopsy and determined the cause; exactly how and when the spleen ruptured is still under investigation. The boy was infected with measles, which is listed on the death certificate as a contributing factor, but Diamantoni said measles did not contribute to what happened to the spleen and was noted only because it was considered a significant condition at the time of death.

Mary Stoltzfus was 6 weeks old when she died Aug. 18 at home. She was born with a genetic birth defect called Amish lethal microcephaly, which causes an unusually small head and underdeveloped brain and typically leaves children living 6 months or less, making her highly vulnerable to infection. A measles infection killed her, Diamantoni told the Associated Press. His office did not perform an autopsy on the girl; the cause of death was determined by the doctors caring for her. Neither infant was old enough to be vaccinated; the first measles dose is typically given around 1 year of age.

The deaths have drawn unusual national scrutiny and become the focus of a political battle between Pennsylvania’s Democratic governor, Josh Shapiro, and officials in Republican President Donald Trump’s administration. Pennsylvania announced the deaths last month, with Shapiro stressing that vaccinations could have averted them. Soon after, U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has a history of raising alarms about established vaccines, attacked Shapiro and suggested the deaths “may even have been altogether fabricated.” Kennedy made similar statements last year when three measles-related deaths were recorded, questioning whether one of the children who died was killed by measles. Because the health secretary oversees the CDC, some public health experts have voiced concern about whether the CDC can still be counted on to post public health data that clashes with Kennedy’s worldview; Dr. Georges Benjamin, executive director of the American Public Health Association, said, ‘Frankly, the CDC is not to be trusted in sharing information.’