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The United States has recorded more than 4,000 measles infections in 2026, with Pennsylvania emerging as the center of the nation’s largest outbreak and accounting for more than one-quarter of all reported cases, according to the latest figures released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Federal health officials reported Friday that 4,080 cases have been identified across 47 states and Washington, D.C. Pennsylvania alone has registered 1,105 infections, giving it the highest total of any state and placing it well ahead of the rest of the country.

South Carolina ranks second with 670 cases, leaving Pennsylvania with 435 more infections than the next most affected state.

The Pennsylvania outbreak represents the state’s most severe measles resurgence in more than three decades. It has also become the subject of a contentious disagreement between Gov. Josh Shapiro and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., particularly over how deaths associated with the disease should be classified and reported.

Measles spreads readily through the air and is considered one of the most contagious infectious diseases. The CDC recommends two doses of the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine as the most effective means of preventing infection. Pennsylvania health officials say the complete two-dose series provides approximately 97 percent protection against measles, with immunity generally lasting throughout a person’s lifetime.

Children and teenagers account for the largest share of infections nationwide. According to the CDC’s 2026 figures, 42 percent of reported patients are between the ages of 5 and 19, while children younger than 5 represent another 17 percent. Adults aged 20 and older account for approximately 40 percent of cases, with the percentages reflecting rounded figures.

The federal agency has identified 42 separate measles outbreaks this year. Approximately 96 percent of all confirmed infections have been connected to those outbreaks, indicating that the overwhelming majority of cases are associated with established chains of transmission.

The national figures have already exceeded the total for the entirety of 2025, when 2,289 measles infections were reported across 45 states and Washington, D.C. The 2026 count is now nearly 1,800 cases higher, even with more than two months remaining in the year.

One of the most disputed aspects of the current outbreak concerns the number of deaths attributed to measles in Pennsylvania.

State health authorities have reported five measles-associated fatalities, while the CDC’s latest national figures recognize only two deaths for 2026. The difference has fueled a public confrontation between Shapiro and Kennedy over the medical standards used to determine whether measles was responsible for a patient’s death.

The federal database does not identify the states or dates associated with its two reported fatalities. As a result, it remains uncertain whether those deaths correspond to any of the five cases documented by Pennsylvania officials. No other state has reported a measles-related death this year.

The CDC has acknowledged that its national fatality count could be revised as additional medical information is examined.

“This number is subject to change. CDC will update its reporting as additional information becomes available and relevant reviews are completed.”

The rise in infections has also prompted emergency action in New York, where Gov. Kathy Hochul declared a statewide disaster emergency on Monday in response to an ongoing measles outbreak.

New York has recorded 97 cases so far this year, compared with 26 throughout 2025, according to federal surveillance figures. The increase has heightened concerns among state health officials as measles continues to spread in multiple regions of the country.

For comparison, three measles deaths were reported nationwide during 2025, including two in Texas and one in New Mexico.

Additional federal data released October 9 show that measles cases increased by 193 in a single week, while 414 patients have been hospitalized nationwide this year, compared with 244 during all of 2025.

Pennsylvania health officials also reported that more than 53,000 MMR vaccine doses were administered across the state during September, more than twice the usual monthly volume, as authorities intensified efforts to contain the outbreak.

The CDC’s total of 4,080 includes 4,062 cases reported by U.S. jurisdictions and 18 infections identified among international visitors.

{Matzav.com}

President Donald Trump said that he will personally decide whether the execution of convicted Fort Hood mass murderer Nidal Hasan should be broadcast live, as a proposal to televise the firing squad execution draws objections from lawmakers in both parties.

Speaking with reporters on the White House South Lawn, Trump said he was considering competing arguments over whether the public should be permitted to watch Hasan’s execution, which is scheduled for December 3.

“He’s a vicious killer, killed 13 people in cold blood, wounded over 20. Some of those people will never have their lives back in a true sense,” Trump told reporters. “He was vicious. He was violent.”

The president suggested that making the execution publicly viewable could discourage others from committing similar atrocities, although he acknowledged that there were strong opinions on both sides of the issue.

“There are two thoughts: don’t show it and show it, because you know by showing it, maybe other people won’t be doing what he did,” the president continued. “So I’ll make a decision ultimately. I know what the military would like to do, but we’ll make a decision.”

Trump’s latest comments followed remarks Friday in which he indicated that officials were still reviewing the possibility of broadcasting the execution, while making clear that the sentence itself would be carried out.

According to Trump, “they’re making a determination about” whether Hasan’s death should be livestreamed, “but he will be killed, it will be through firing squad.”

The president also expressed little concern over the particular circumstances of Hasan’s execution, emphasizing his belief that the death penalty was justified by the magnitude of the attack.

“So, I really don’t care how he goes, as long as he goes, and I think that the death penalty is a very worthy way of going for him,” Trump stated.

The White House confirmed earlier in the week that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had formally proposed executing Hasan by firing squad on December 3 and that Trump had authorized the recommendation.

Hasan, who served as an Army psychiatrist, carried out the November 2009 massacre at a military processing facility at Fort Hood, Texas. Armed with a handgun, he opened fire on soldiers and civilians, murdering 12 military personnel and one civilian and wounding 32 others.

The shooting became the deadliest mass shooting ever carried out at an American military installation, devastating military families and raising serious questions about security procedures and warning signs preceding the attack.

Hasan represented himself during his 2013 military trial and openly acknowledged responsibility for the killings. During his opening statement, he told the court that the “evidence will clearly show that I am the shooter,” while explaining that he had acted in response to American military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.

He was convicted and sentenced to death, although his execution has remained pending for more than a decade as the military justice process continued.

Vice President JD Vance addressed the proposed livestream Friday, distancing himself from the idea of watching the execution and expressing uncertainty about whether a broadcast would ultimately take place.

Vance told reporters that he would not watch the execution if it were televised and added, “I don’t know that that’s actually going to happen.”

The proposal has generated significant opposition on Capitol Hill, with Republicans joining Democrats in questioning whether a public broadcast of an execution would be appropriate for the United States military.

Critics have raised concerns about turning the implementation of a military death sentence into a public spectacle, even in a case involving one of the deadliest attacks against American service members.

Democratic lawmakers have also challenged Hegseth’s handling of the matter, with Sen. Mark Kelly among those calling for the defense secretary’s removal over the proposed public execution.

Should the December 3 execution proceed, it would mark the first time the U.S. military has carried out a death sentence in approximately 65 years. The last military execution took place in 1961, when Army Private John A. Bennett was hanged at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.

Hegseth has defended the proposed broadcast as a means of demonstrating the consequences of attacks against American military personnel. During a television interview Thursday, he said the execution would be accessible to the public because “people need to understand that there’s serious consequences for these types of things.”

Opposition has extended beyond Washington. Survivors of the Fort Hood massacre have voiced concerns about the proposed broadcast, including Alonzo Lunsford, who was shot seven times during the attack and has warned against turning the execution into a spectacle.

Religious leaders have also objected. Archbishop Paul Coakley, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, condemned the proposed broadcast and urged the administration to reconsider. Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican’s secretary of state, similarly criticized the idea of making an execution available for public viewing.

The debate has also raised questions about the precedent such a broadcast would establish. Although executions have historically been witnessed by designated officials, relatives and other authorized observers, the Pentagon’s proposal would make Hasan’s death available to a potentially worldwide audience.

The military has conducted no executions since Army Private John A. Bennett was hanged at Fort Leavenworth in April 1961. Its last known execution by firing squad occurred in November 1945.

For now, the December 3 execution remains scheduled, while the question of whether the public will be able to watch it awaits Trump’s final decision.

{Matzav.com}