A child in Lewis County, New York, died after a measles infection, Governor Kathy Hochul announced. The child’s age was not disclosed. The death was reported as the first in the state associated with measles in more than 30 years. State and county health officials expressed their condolences and urged residents to check their vaccination status, identifying the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine as the best protection against the disease.

Hochul linked the death to what she described as federal policies that had undermined confidence in vaccination, including statements by President Donald Trump and Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. that she said had spread misinformation or expressed vaccine skepticism. New York declared a state of emergency in early October after more than 100 people were infected in one week. Nationally, 4,852 confirmed measles cases and three deaths had been reported by the end of October, according to the CDC. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said the MMR vaccine was the most effective way to prevent measles.