By Tim Lambert | Editor-in-chief
“My deepest sympathies are with the loved ones who are facing this unimaginable loss. Because measles was largely eliminated in the Commonwealth for more than three decades, people are not familiar with this disease and don’t fully understand the potential severity of the illness. We want to ensure every Pennsylvanian has the information they need to protect themselves, their loved ones and their communities. As a physician, I want to make sure that people understand that the MMR vaccine is safe and provides the best protection we have against measles.” — Pennsylvania Health Secretary Dr. Debra Bogen, after announcing the country’s first two measles deaths in 2026 occurred in Pennsylvania.
A good Wednesday morning to you. Ahead of remembrance events next month to mark the 25th anniversary of the September 11th attacks, Peter Hall and I will be traveling to the Flight 93 National Memorial in Somerset County this morning as part of our upcoming coverage. I’m looking forward to going back to the site for the first time in five years and perhaps running into some old friends.
Now let’s get you to our stop stories.
Thanks for starting your day with us. As always, we deeply appreciate you reading, sharing and supporting our work. -- Tim
Photo of a single dose of the MMR vaccine. (Joshua Haiar/South Dakota Searchlight)
By Ian Karbal
The Pennsylvania Department of Health confirmed two measles-related deaths in Lancaster County. Both people, who lived in the county, were unvaccinated. No other personal details were provided in order to protect their families’ privacy.
They are the first confirmed measles-related deaths in the nation this year, and come amid the country’s largest outbreak of measles in decades.
The United States declared measles eliminated in 2000, due to the success of a widespread vaccination campaign. But the country’s measles-free status is now at risk, with 2,777 cases confirmed by the Centers for Disease Control this year so far.
Pennsylvania has so far reported 393 cases in 29 counties in 2026. Eighty-six cases were reported in the last week, and 70 have resulted in hospitalization. Nearly half of them this year have been in Lancaster County.
Franklin Kury served in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives from 1967 to 1972 and later in the state senate from 1973 to 1980. (Photo courtesy of the Pennsylvania House Archives)
By Marie Cusick of Inside Climate News
A monumental figure in Pennsylvania’s environmental movement passed away last week. Former state legislator Franklin Kury, who was 89, led Pennsylvania to become one of the first governments in the world to adopt a constitutional amendment guaranteeing a healthy environment as a basic right.
“He is a true icon, and a historic leader,” said Delaware Riverkeeper Maya van Rossum. “When people start writing the history of the environmental movement, they will not just be looking to people like Rachel Carson; they will be talking about Senator Franklin Kury.”
Kury authored Article 1, Section 27—better known as the environmental rights amendment— which was approved by voters and added to Pennsylvania’s constitution in 1971. Today, dozens of countries and several states have similar provisions in their constitutions. In some places, they’ve formed a legal basis for an argument that governments have a responsibility to act on climate change.
Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday speaks at a news conference Tuesday, August 25, 2026, where he announced a lawsuit against the social media company Snap Inc. alleging its Snapchat app is harmful for children. (Screenshot/Commonwealth Media Services)
By Peter Hall
Announcing a lawsuit alleging Snapchat’s 13+ age rating misleads parents and that the platform is designed to be addictive, Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday called on the social media company to take steps to protect young users.
Fresh off an announcement earlier this month that his office is suing TikTok over claimed violations of the commonwealth’s consumer protection laws, Sunday said the action against Snap Inc. seeks honesty in how it markets its product.
“This lawsuit and our previous actions are not about taking on the role of parents,” Sunday said in a news conference Tuesday. “It’s about empowering parents with the tools … to make decisions for their children. If apps are misleading parents about how those very apps work, how can they make sound decisions for their children?”
Snap said in a statement the lawsuit’s allegations fundamentally misrepresent the platform and the company’s approach to teen safety.
Independent reporting on Pennsylvania state government that impacts communities statewide — free to read and republish.
Amid rising gas and grocery price, we understand how important it is to make every dollar count.
After all, we're filling up our tanks so we can get out across the state to find out how policy decisions in Harrisburg and D.C. are impacting you and your communities.
Your investment in independent journalism helps fund those trips and the stories that come out of them. It also helps ensure that your fellow Pennsylvania who might not be able to afford a donation to have access to factual and contextual independent journalism.
Please consider supporting the Capitol-Star today. You can make a one-time gift of $10, $25, $50 or $100. You can also "set it and forget it," by becoming a sustaining member with a monthly contribution between $10, $20 or $30.
Join your friends and neighbors -- like Carol from New Cumberland, Catherine from Mercer and Robert from Downingtown— as donors today.
A skill games parlor in Williamsport, Pa. (Photo by Peter Hall/Pennsylvania Capital-Star)
By Hayley O’Brien of WITF
The four machines at the Highspire VFW in Dauphin County don’t take up much space. They look like arcade games, and people sit to play them, sometimes for hours at a time.
With their flashing lights and chance to win money, they look a bit like casino slot machines. But unlike slot machines, they don’t make noise, and customers can play them in places such as laundry mats, gas stations and VFWs.
They’re called “skill games,” and they have become a fixture in some gathering places – and an important source of revenue for the businesses that host them.
They have also been at the center of Pennsylvania’s state budget battles and political fights for years. Now, the machines could disappear from those locations in October.
For organizations such as the Highspire VFW, the stakes are high.
TODAY IN THE CAPITAL-STAR
Dolly Parton dies at 80 after a life of music and giving: Dolly Parton, the personification of Tennessee music, died Tuesday at age 80. She has an estimated net worth of $650 million and used her considerable wealth for philanthropic causes. “I’m kind of addicted to the feeling of giving,” she told People magazine in 2021, “knowing that I’m doing something good for someone else.”
Active court order still blocking Trump effort to restrict vote-by-mail: The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday handed a procedural victory to President Donald Trump on an executive order to curb mail-in voting, but the administration is still fighting a separate ruling that limits a portion of the order and remains in effect — complicating the administration’s temporary win.
Cheaper health insurance changed their lives. Then it went away. In Pennsylvania and 48 other states, the number of people enrolled in ACA plans, also known as Obamacare, has declined since the subsidies expired and coverage became more expensive. Nationwide, participation has declined this year by nearly 3 million people, to about 19.2 million from 21.8 million in 2025.
ICYMI
Additional passenger train service to and from Pittsburgh coming soon: Amtrak will operate a second daily passenger train between Pittsburgh and New York via Harrisburg and Philadelphia starting in mid-November, Gov. Josh Shapiro’s office announced Monday.
Report finds bacteria from fecal matter affecting Pa. rivers and streams: The nonprofit PennEnvironment found that at 55% of 653 monitoring sites, levels of E. coli reached potentially unsafe levels for swimmers in 2024 and 2025. Nearly 40% of testing sites tested positive for unsafe levels of the bacteria on at least one-quarter of the days they were tested.
Thanks for reading Morning Guide. Did you know our weekend digest is also free? Sign up here. And if you enjoyed today’s edition, please forward to a friend. Increasing our readership helps us cover more news.