Updated

Updated · WTAE Pittsburgh · Sep 19

Pennsylvania Threatens to Pull CDC Aid Request Over 4 Unacknowledged Measles Deaths

Updated

Updated · WTAE Pittsburgh · Sep 19

Pennsylvania Threatens to Pull CDC Aid Request Over 4 Unacknowledged Measles Deaths

1 articles · Updated · WTAE Pittsburgh · Sep 19

Pennsylvania told the CDC it will withdraw its Epi-Aid request unless the agency publicly recognizes four measles-associated deaths tied to the state’s outbreak.
A Sept. 10 letter from Health Secretary Debra Bogen said the state had already shared its death definition with the CDC and the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists, and the CDC raised no objections.
The state said it still needs federal help as cases, hospitalizations and deaths continue, even after regular coordination with CDC staff and two earlier technical-assistance requests.
Pennsylvania has administered more than 4,400 MMR doses at 140 pop-up clinics and over 6,800 statewide in 2026; nearly 47,000 shots were reported to its registry in August alone.
Bogen framed the dispute as a test of federal-state outbreak cooperation, demanding transparent dashboard reporting and timely public communication from the CDC.