A child in Lewis County in rural northern New York has died of measles, the state's first measles-associated death in more than 30 years, state health officials said Monday as an outbreak spreads through the state and its neighbors.
Officials released no other details about the child and asked that the family's privacy be respected. Gov. Kathy Hochul said the death occurred in Lewis County, which sits about 93 miles north of Syracuse.
Hochul said she was heartbroken and blamed federal policy, calling the death a devastating sign of what is lost when Washington wears away decades of gains against preventable diseases.
The Trump administration has revised the childhood immunization schedule and is reviewing how vaccines are recommended. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has cut childhood immunization recommendations by a third, though the CDC still advises two doses of the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine.
Cases climb across New York
New York had recorded 178 measles cases this year as of Oct. 24. All but eight were outside New York City, and Lewis County alone accounts for 15.
Hochul declared a state disaster emergency in early October, four weeks before the child died. The order allowed paramedics, midwives and others to give measles shots and let nurses order testing alongside doctors. Last month she said she would ask Washington for help.
The state Health Department says it will vaccinate any unvaccinated person who requests the MMR shot, and it has offered Lewis County resources for community outreach and local immunization drives.
We are deeply saddened by the death of a child in Lewis County associated with the ongoing measles outbreak.
New York State Department of Health
A national surge
Next door, Pennsylvania is fighting the country's worst outbreak in 30 years. Its health department counted 1,433 cases as of Monday, including 269 hospitalizations and six deaths.
Nationally, the CDC tallied 4,852 cases as of Friday, a year already more than double 2025's total. South Carolina and Utah are each reporting more than 500 cases. The CDC has confirmed three measles-associated deaths this year, a lower figure than states have reported.
The U.S. halted domestic measles spread in 2000 by keeping vaccination rates high, but coverage has since slipped below the 95% needed to prevent outbreaks. Deaths, while rare, strike roughly one to three of every 1,000 patients.
Two doses of the vaccine provide 97% protection, usually for life. Children typically get the first shot around age 1 and the second around age 5, and during outbreaks babies as young as 6 months can receive an early dose.
