Key facts
- Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. allegedly directed the deletion of two measles deaths from CDC public data.
- CDC staff had reportedly already accepted the deaths as measles-related before the deletion.
- The two deaths, reported by Pennsylvania health officials, were briefly posted and then removed from the CDC website on August 30.
- An internal CDC database reportedly still contains records of the two deaths.
- The deletion occurred following a public exchange between Kennedy and Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro regarding measles outbreaks and vaccine misinformation.
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. reportedly instructed the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to remove two measles-related deaths from its public data, according to multiple reports. CDC staff had already reviewed and accepted the information characterizing the deaths as measles-related before the directive was issued.
The two deaths, involving a newborn and a child from Pennsylvania, were briefly posted on the CDC's website on August 30 before being deleted within hours. This action followed a public dispute between Kennedy and Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, who had criticized Kennedy's anti-vaccine statements for contributing to measles outbreaks.
Despite the removal from public view, an internal CDC database, accessible to state and local health officials as well as agency employees, reportedly still lists the two deaths. The CDC's public statement regarding the deaths was altered to state that available information does not establish whether measles caused or contributed to the deaths, or if other causes were involved.
Pennsylvania's state health department has indicated that it provided the CDC with all necessary information. The Department of Health and Human Services had not immediately responded to requests for comment regarding the discrepancy.