Gov. Josh Shapiro held a press conference to address two recent deaths. He pointed to the loss of life as a warning to the public. The governor stated these were the first measles deaths in 35 years. He blamed the lack of shots for the tragedy. In the first measles-related fatalities the Commonwealth has witnessed in 35 years, Shapiro stated that the consequences of insufficient immunizations are now visible.
He added that the illness is preventable. This was the official story released to the media. According to Fox News Politics, Democratic Governor Shapiro highlighted two unvaccinated individuals who died during a press conference held earlier this week. "Two Unvaccinated People Died From Measles in Pennsylvania, Officials Say" was the headline featured in a New York Times article.
But the medical report tells a different story. Lancaster County Coroner Dr. Stephen Diamantoni examined the infant closely. He found the baby died from an internal hemorrhage. The cause was a "traumatic rupture" of the spleen, according to Breitbart. Dr. Diamantoni said he did find the measles virus in the lung tissue. However, he also noted a critical detail. He "did not find evidence that the infant's spleen was enlarged."
This matters because the baby was a newborn. The child was under the 12-15 month age limit for the vaccine. The infant could not have been vaccinated yet. The coroner's findings suggest the death had a different primary cause than the governor claimed.
Lancaster County Commissioner Joshua Parsons is calling out the governor. He says the framing of the deaths was misleading. Parsons told reporters that the official story was deceptive. He argued the government wanted people to believe measles killed the baby directly. Parsons noted that while the governor described the fatalities as measles-associated during the press conference, the underlying assertion framed them as measles deaths.
Kennedy was also critical of Shapiro's comments. The commissioner believes the public is being misled about the nature of the illness. The coroner's report shows the spleen rupture was the immediate cause of death. This contradicts the simple narrative of a vaccine-preventable fatality.
The Department of Health has not fully answered the questions raised. When Fox News Digital inquired about the lack of contact with the coroner, The Pennsylvania Department of Health replied that it was adhering to protocol. Yet the facts remain on the table. One official says the deaths were a direct result of no shots. Another official says the baby died from a physical rupture before shots were possible. The public is left with two versions of the truth. The governor insists the deaths were preventable. The coroner insists the medical evidence shows a rupture. The debate over the exact cause of death continues.
