The CDC is refusing to count the deaths of two children in Pennsylvania from measles, directly contradicting the state's health officials.

Sept 4 (Reuters) - The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Friday there were 3,134 confirmed measles cases in the country so far this year, marking the highest annual total in more than 35 years.

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. acknowledged Friday that measles caused the death of an infant in Pennsylvania, after previously questioning the state’s reporting of two measles-related deaths amid a growing outbreak.

The deaths have been at the heart of a bitter political dispute between RFK Jr. and Gov. Josh Shapiro (D).

Even as the measles outbreak in South Carolina appeared to be waning in late December, a new form of disease modeling was telling public health officials the outbreak was actually increasing,

In a highly unusual move, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is not counting two measles-associated deaths reported by the state of Pennsylvania in its measles death tally, saying it doesn’t have enough information to determine whether measles caused or contributed to the fatalities.

The agency also launched the Overdose Prevention Data Channel tool that aims to bring together key information from a trio of CDC data systems to show what is happening with drug

The CDC has refused to add two measles deaths in Pennsylvania to a national database as Health Secretary RFK Jr. cast doubt on the cases.