Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (left) and U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (Photos: AP)
A Pittsburgh-based physician regarded as one of the nation’s top infectious disease experts said this week’s public spat between Gov. Josh Shapiro and U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has unnecessarily politicized the response to the state’s measles outbreak
“I spend a large part of every week explaining this virus — to reporters, to audiences and to people who are not ideologues but are genuinely unsure what to believe. This week made every part of that job harder,” Dr. Amesh Adalja, a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, wrote onSubstack
The state Department of Health said this week the deaths of two unvaccinated people in Lancaster County were associated with the measles. They would be the first measles-related deaths in Pennsylvania in 35 years and the first in the United States this year
During a news conference Tuesday, Shapiro, a Democrat from Montgomery County, called the deaths “completely preventable” and criticized Kennedy for “spreading skepticism” about the MMR vaccine that protects against the measles, mumps and rubella
Lancaster County Coroner Stephen Diamantoni, a Republican in his fifth term in the elected position, told TribLive his office hasn’t confirmed any deaths caused bymeasles. Investigations are ongoing
Adalja told TribLive on Thursday that the situation could have been handled better by Shapiro and his administration
“There was definitely a need to have a press conference and get information out there. What was lacking was appropriate context,” Adalja said in a phone interview. “Knowing that there is so much disinformation out there about vaccines, you need to do this in a careful manner and be as transparent as possible. You can tell people what you know and what you don’t know, what tests you’re performing and when you hope to have more information.”
Adalja criticized Shapiro for what he described as withholding information “under the guise of privacy,” which acted as an “accelerant” for “an already skeptical public.” That helped ignite a firestorm on social media, Adalja said
It all became the latest chapter in the ongoing debate over vaccines that intensified during the covid-19 pandemic. What many viewed as government overreach during the pandemic, from extended lockdowns to mask mandates, further fueled public distrust in the medical community that continues today
Kennedy was critical of Shapiro in social media posts and a C-SPAN interview following the state’s news conference
“The performance was a replay of the Democrats’ covid playbook: fearmongering, misinformation, finger-pointing and the weaponization of infectious disease fears for political gain,” Kennedy said in an Xpost on his government account
In apost on his personal X account, Kennedy accused Shapiro of “gaslighting” the public and said most of the decline in Pennsylvania vaccination rates happened during the Biden administration. He also spent much of that post countering Shapiro’s assertion, citing the American Academy of Pediatrics, that the MMR vaccine does not contain fetal tissue
About 95.5% of Pennsylvania kindergartners received at least two doses of the MMR vaccine during the 2020-21 school year, according to the state Department of Health. State figures show the rate steadily declined to 93.2% in 2025-26
Shapiro responded to Kennedy with a nearly 600-word social media post addressing various claims made by Kennedy before urging parents to consult with a healthcare provider before making vaccination decisions for their children
“The most important conversation that needs to take place now is one that should happen offline, in the real world, between parents, their trusted healthcare providers, and other medical experts,” Shapiro wrote
Shapiro’s office did not respond to questions from TribLive for this story
A U.S. Department of Health and Human Services spokesperson referred TribLive toan X post from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention published late Thursday afternoon
“We appreciate Secretary Kennedy’s efforts to clarify conflicting information from Pennsylvania officials about whether the two reported deaths were caused by measles. CDC is working to determine what actually occurred,” the CDC wrote. “These discrepancies raise important questions, particularly because the Governor’s Office has not provided CDC with information relevant to the outbreak and has declined our offers of assistance.”
Republican political consultant Christopher Nicholas called both sides’ handling of the situation performative
“When everyone finishes performing for their various bases, let’s remember that the MMR vaccine is safe and effective and it’s important for people to get vaccinated,” he told TribLive
Adalja questioned why Shapiro asserted that the two deaths in Lancaster County were “completely preventable.”
“I would have told the governor it’s inappropriate to say ‘completely preventable’ until the Department of Health had more information. It may rise to measles causation, but we don’t have all the data yet. All of that could have been easily articulated,” Adalja said
“I’d advise (Shapiro) to be a governor first and not a politician. It’s not just Gov. Shapiro — all governors right now are part of a (political) tribe, and their allegiance is often to their tribe and not the work in front of them. You need to be a public servant first and a politician second.”
About the Writer
Tom Fontaine is director of politics and editorial standards at TribLive. He can be reached at tfontaine@triblive.com
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