Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was the nation’s most prominent critic of vaccines until Trump nominated him to be Secretary of Health and Human Services, the nation’s leading public health official. During his Senate confirmation hearings, he pretended that he was not anti-vaccine anymore and that he would not express anti-vaccine views anymore.
But old habits and antiquated views are hard to shake.
RFK Jr. has been consistently pro-vaccine and anti-vaccine since he took charge of HHS. The nation’s top vaccine expert resigned when he realized that his boss continues to be anti-vaccine. RFK, with no experience running any large organization, has fired thousands of scientists, driven away leading scientists, closed down important research, and inflicted massive demoralization on what was once the greatly respected HHS.
Lauren Weber wrote in the Washington Post about RFK Jr.’s hypocritical stance on vaccines. The Kennedy family must be deeply ashamed of him.
Early last month, after two Texas children had died of measles, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. acknowledged that the MMR vaccine prevents the spread of that virus. But later that day, he posted photos of himself with anti-vaccine doctors, calling them “extraordinary healers” and promoting unproven treatments.
In a television interview three days later, Kennedy, the nation’s top health official, encouraged vaccination for measles. In the same conversation, he cast doubt on whether one of the children had actually died of measles-related complications.
And in an interview with Phil McGraw at the end of April, Kennedy said of the measles vaccine: “HHS continues to recommend that vaccine. But there are problems with the vaccine.”
With the nation in the grip of the deadliest measles outbreak in decades, Kennedy is equivocating with a worried U.S. public, health experts said. His mixed message appeals to vaccine believers and skeptics, muddying public health instructions at a time when clarity is essential.
Elevated from longtime anti-vaccine activist to guardian of the nation’s health, Kennedy is trying to appeal to both sides: the public, which largely supports vaccination, and the anti-vaccine hard-liners who helped propel his rise. His “doublespeak,” as public health experts and academics who follow the anti-vaccine movementcall it, gives him cover with both groups, allowing him to court public opinion while still assuaging his anti-vaccine base.
At least half of adults are uncertain whether to believe false claims about measles, its vaccine and its treatment, according to an April poll by the health-care think tank KFF.
“It’s confusing, and maybe that’s part of the strategy,” said Bruce Gellin, who oversaw HHS’s vaccine program in the Bush and Obama administrations. Gellin noted that confusion could lead parents to opt out of vaccination — exactly what health officials don’t want in an outbreak.
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In a statement about vaccination, HHS said: “Secretary Kennedy’s HHS has pledged radical transparency to the American public. This means being honest and straightforward about what we know — and what we don’t know — about medical products, including vaccines.”
Vaccines go through several stages of clinical trials, are tested on thousands of people, and are monitored after they are rolled out for any adverse events. Medical experts say they are safe, effective and considered one of the best tools for protecting public health.
When asked about the unproven treatments Kennedy had promoted, an HHS spokesperson said Kennedy will be enlisting the scientific community and the department to “activate a scientific process to treat a host of diseases, including measles, with single or multiple existing drugs in combination with vitamins and other modalities.” It is unclear what that will entail, but Kennedy has long advocated the use of vitamins and supplements.
Kennedy is scheduled to appear Wednesday before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, where he is expected to face questions on his vaccine policies.
The outbreak in Texas has spread across the state and beyond, including a significant uptick of cases in El Paso. Experts worry the United States this year will record the largest number of cases since measles was declared eliminated a quarter-century ago. A recent study showed that if U.S. vaccination rates continue to decline, the nation could face millions of cases over the next 25 years.
Once an outbreak begins, health officials have only a short time to convince the U.S. public that vaccination is the proven way to save lives, said Chrissie Juliano, executive director of the Big Cities Health Coalition. The MMR vaccine — which protects against measles, mumps and rubella — is safe and effective, public health experts say.