GoKawiilCDC excludes two Pennsylvania measles deaths from official national tally
Pennsylvania health officials reported a newborn and a child died of measles, but the CDC removed these two deaths from its national measles surveillance data over the weekend after initially including them. New CDC director Erica Schwartz reportedly ordered the change, adding a disclaimer stating it's unclear whether measles caused or contributed to the deaths.
GoKawiil's interpretation of the reporting above, not reported fact.
This marks a break from longstanding practice where states, not the CDC, determine cause of death for reported cases, raising questions about political influence over public health data during a measles resurgence. The back-and-forth changes to the CDC's website in under 24 hours also undermine public trust in the agency's transparency and consistency on outbreak reporting.
- CDC excluded two measles deaths reported by Pennsylvania from its national count.
- New CDC director Erica Schwartz reportedly ordered the exclusion, breaking with precedent that states determine death causes.
- The CDC's website data was altered multiple times over a single weekend, first adding then removing the deaths.
Source: arstechnica.com, 2026-09-01
Published there as: “A newborn and child reportedly died of measles; CDC isn't counting them”
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