Montgomery County has three confirmed measles cases as Pennsylvania's outbreak continues to escalate, with a sixth death announced Monday, Oct. 12, and the statewide case count reaching 1,136.

A free vaccine clinic offering MMR shots is scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 24, at Montgomery County Community College's Blue Bell Campus, 340 DeKalb Pike, from 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. COVID-19 and flu vaccines will also be available. Insurance may be billed, but there is no cost or co-pay, according to Montco.Today.

Montgomery County's three cases appeared in the state health department's Thursday, Oct. 8 data update, according to the Reading Eagle. The Montgomery County health department's measles page, last updated Oct. 2, had not yet reflected those cases.

Uninsured or underinsured residents can call county health clinics in Norristown (610-278-5145) or Pottstown (610-970-5040) for a free MMR vaccine.

Sixth death statewide

Franklin County Coroner Jordan F. Conner announced Monday that a 39-year-old unvaccinated woman from Chambersburg died Sunday, Oct. 11. She was not vaccinated.

Conner told The Philadelphia Inquirer her primary cause of death was "a probable acute cardiac event due to possible complications of the measles." She also had several other underlying medical conditions, which the coroner's office declined to specify, citing privacy laws.

Franklin County had recorded only seven measles cases before the death, according to WESA. The Pennsylvania Department of Health said Monday it is reviewing the reported death, according to NBC News.

The state's measles dashboard, last updated Saturday, Oct. 10, listed 1,136 total cases, 219 hospitalizations and five confirmed deaths. The sixth death had not yet been added.

Statewide picture

The five previously confirmed deaths involved two infants in Lancaster County, an 18-year-old woman in Mifflin County, a 40-year-old woman in Jefferson County and an unvaccinated Lancaster County resident whose death was announced Oct. 1, according to Patch. Those were the first measles fatalities in Pennsylvania in 35 years.

Two-thirds of the state's cases have been diagnosed in adults, according to state data cited by NBC News. The outbreak has spread to 41 of Pennsylvania's 67 counties, according to a state health department update on Oct. 7. Health care providers administered more than 56,000 MMR vaccine doses in September, more than double the typical monthly total of about 25,000.

Pennsylvania Secretary of Health Debra Bogen said Sept. 15, when the state announced its third and fourth deaths, that the department was "committed to working with our partners across Pennsylvania to stem this outbreak and prevent more deaths," as reported by WHYY.

Anyone experiencing measles symptoms should call a health care provider before leaving home or contact the state health department hotline at 877-724-3258.