Kentucky reports third whooping cough infant death this year. How to stay safe
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- Kentucky reports third infant pertussis death this year; cases rising statewide
- State has recorded 566 pertussis cases in 2025, highest total since 2012
- Health officials urge vaccination: DTaP series for children and Tdap boosters
As whooping cough cases in Kentucky continue to rise, the state’s Department for Public Health is reporting a third pertussis-related infant death within the last year.
The latest death was reported Nov. 21, and the two previous deaths were reported in June. The agency did not release details about the infants.
The health department said the neither the children nor their mothers received the pertussis vaccination during pregnancy or early infancy. Prior to June, Kentucky hadn’t reported a pertussis-related death since 2018.
Several U.S. states are experiencing high levels of whooping cough cases. There have been more than 25,000 cases nationwide reported in 2025, the second consecutive year with more cases than average, according to ABC News.
In Kentucky, 566 cases of pertussis, also called whooping cough, have been reported year to date, the largest number of recorded cases since 2012, according to the health department.
Whooping cough is a highly infectious bacterial disease involving the respiratory tract. It is caused by bacteria in the mouth, nose and throat of an infected person. The early symptoms are similar to the common cold, but the cough often gets worse after several weeks, changing from a dry, hacking cough to bursts of uncontrollable, sometimes violent, coughing.
The best way to prevent the spread of whooping cough is to ensure you’re up-to-date on the vaccine. The health department said patients who are vaccinated could still catch whooping cough, but the symptoms are usually less severe and rarely require hospitalization.
Many of the state’s cases involved school-aged children who were up-to-date on their vaccines. The health department said it expects whooping cough cases to increase during the winter months.
Whooping cough vaccines
The pertussis vaccine is part of the routine childhood vaccination series and is required for schools in Kentucky. There are two types of whooping cough/pertussis vaccines — the initial DTaP and the booster Tdap shots, according to the Cleveland Clinic.
The first variety, the DTaP vaccines, protects young children from diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis. According to the clinic, by the age of 7, a child should receive five shots of the pertussis vaccine.
Additionally, preteens, teens and adults should get a Tdap booster every 10 years.
The rate of Kentucky children who have received all five DTaP doses by age 6 varies from 10.52% on the low end to 38.68% on the high end, according to the Immunize Kentucky Coalition, citing state immunization registry data from 2020.
Nearly 20% of Fayette County 6-year-olds have received five doses of the DTaP vaccine, giving them a high rate of protection against pertussis until their preteens, when immunity begins to wane and a booster dose is recommended.
Jefferson County, Kentucky’s most populous county, has the lowest five-dose DTaP vaccination rate in the state, with just 10.52% of 6-year-olds having received all five doses. The highest, at 38.68%, is Grayson County in the southwest portion of the state.
