Gov. Josh Shapiro’s (D-PA) handling of Pennsylvania’s measles outbreak and his feud with Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. have been thrust into the national arena as he positions himself as a top contender for the 2028 Democratic presidential nomination.Shapiro, who is up for reelection in November, came to rhetorical blows with Kennedy following the commonwealth’s announcement of two measles-associated deaths in Lancaster County on Aug. 25, amid the worst outbreak in three decades. The Pennsylvania Department of Health recorded 460 measles cases across 31 counties as of Aug. 28, up from the roughly 420 when Shapiro announced the two measles-associated deaths on Tuesday.
Shapiro and Kennedy got into a back-and-forth posting debate on X this week following the governor’s high-profile press conference. On Aug. 26, Shapiro accused Kennedy of spreading misinformation that the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine contains aborted fetal material.But the conflict has led to Make America Healthy Again advocates criticizing Shapiro’s handling of the outbreak, including by questioning whether the two individuals actually died as a result of measles infections.Following Shapiro’s press conference, the Lancaster County coroner reported that one of the deaths was of a newborn infant from a ruptured spleen shortly after birth. The infant did test positive for measles upon postmortem, but the coroner said the infection was not the cause of the damage to the child’s spleen. The Pennsylvania Department of Health has not shared any information about the second reported measles-associated death, other than that the individual was not vaccinated.After an explosion of online controversy surrounding the announcement, Shapiro said at a press conference on Friday that he believes the discussion about vaccines should not take place online.“I don’t think it serves the interest of public health or slows the spread of this outbreak for me to get into a back-and-forth about conspiracy theories that are showing up online,” Shapiro said. “I got a serious job to do for the people of Pennsylvania.”Daniel Fee, a Democratic political strategist based in Philadelphia, told the Washington Examiner that Shapiro “didn’t pick a fight” with Kennedy or Republicans about the issue and the criticism betrays GOP concerns that Shapiro could be a force to reckon with in 2028.“The response, I think, tells you both the concern that current leaders have about the issue, but also about Gov. Shapiro more generally,” he said.Shapiro’s 2028 plans
