RFK Jr's Mission Accomplished Measles Moment
Kennedy has done little to control the outbreaks and thinks he is doing a great job...
Good news everyone! RFK Jr says that we don’t have to be concerned about measles anymore. Why? It’s certainly not because he has done such a good job controlling our outbreaks!
After all, we recently hit a new record - the most cases in a single year since 1992, and we did it in July.
RFK Jr's Mission Accomplished Measles Moment
With calls to declare measles a public health emergency, which would free up federal money to help states fight the outbreaks (money that is needed after the DOGE funding cuts), RFK Jr insists that he is doing a great job.
“We’ve done a very, very good job at controlling it.”
Secretary RFK Jr
Why is Secretary RFK Jr so confident in his performance in the face of three deaths, including two unvaccinated children, and case counts that continue to rise?
It’s not because he is doing much of anything to help control the outbreaks, but rather because he thinks that we shouldn’t be concerned because some other countries are seeing even more cases!
“We are doing probably better than any, oh certainly better than any of the other industrialized countries in the world in controlling it.”
Secretary RFK Jr
He went so far as to call out Mexico for having more measles cases than the United States, even though the Mexico outbreak (where there have been 10 deaths) was started when an unvaccinated child with measles traveled from Texas to Mexico!
And while he talks about declining outbreaks and folks who don’t want to get vaccinated, he doesn’t mention all the new cases and outbreaks that are popping up each week.
“And we are taking care of those populations that don’t want to vaccinate.”
Secretary RFK Jr
He also never mentions the importance of getting vaccinated to prevent the outbreaks in this interview, as it is clear that his focus is not on improving vaccination rates.
That would be especially important in the face of the rising global measles outbreaks that RFK Jr mentions, something that he doesn’t seem to understand. As bad as this year is shaping up to be, without a huge push to get people vaccinated, next year will be even worse.
But it’s not surprising that Secretary RFK Jr doesn’t consider the outbreaks a national public health emergency.
He has long downplayed the outbreaks, even after the two unvaccinated children died in Texas.
RFK Jr has also frequently spread misinformation about both measles and the MMR vaccine. He even published a book about measles filled with propaganda that scares parents away from getting vaccinated and protected!
“I am writing with deep concern over your response – or lack thereof – to the rapid resurgence and spread of measles across the United States over the past several months. Under your tutelage as Secretary, you have undermined vaccines, gutted public health funding, and dismantled core federal protections meant to keep Americans safe. By destabilizing the nation’s infectious disease response infrastructure via conducting mass layoffs including infectious disease scientists, indiscriminately issuing careless and devastating grant freezes and rescissions, and politicizing the overhaul of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), you have walked our country into the nation’s largest measles outbreak in 33 years, leading cases to hit a record high a full 25 years after this country eliminated the disease. What began as a localized outbreak in Texas has now exploded into a nationwide public health crisis, infecting nearly 1,300 Americans across 38 states, hospitalizing scores, and proving to be deadly.”
Charles E. Schumer United States Senator
So maybe that’s our real public health emergency (in addition to measles hitting record-breaking levels)…
RFK Jr as Secretary of HHS!
Tragically, we may have to wait for more deaths or until we reach another record before more people realize this, and he is replaced.
References
Amidst Nation’s Largest Measles Outbreak In 33 Years & Over 25 Years After It Was Eliminated, Leader Schumer Calls On Sec. Kennedy To Immediately Declare A Public Health Emergency, Stop The Political Theater, And Prioritize Kids Over Conspiracies https://www.democrats.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/amidst-nations-largest-measles-outbreak-in-33-years-and-over-25-years-after-it-was-eliminated-leader-schumer-calls-on-sec-kennedy-to-immediately-declare-a-public-health-emergency-stop-the-political-theater-and-prioritize-kids-over-conspiracies
Charles E. Schumer Letter to RFK Jr https://www.democrats.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/letter_to_hhs_measles_outbreak.pdf
Federal and Dairy Industry Officials Announce Voluntary Removal of Artificial Ice Cream Dyes Reporter Questions https://www.c-span.org/program/news-conference/federal-and-dairy-industry-officials-announce-voluntary-removal-of-artificial-ice-cream-dyes-by-2027/662491?offset=1400000000000
RFK Jr. downplays measles outbreak during Texas visit RFK Jr. downplays measles outbreak during Texas visit