Gov. Josh Green battled a measles outbreak that killed 83 people, mostly children. President Trump wants Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., a vaccine skeptic, as his health policy chief.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Donald Trump’s nominee to run the Department of Health and Human Services, once pitched the idea to run an experiment on the children of Samoa to see whether vaccines actually work.
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Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has said vaccines are not safe. His support for abortion access has made conservatives uncomfortable.
Samoa’s director general of health says Robert F. Kennedy Jnr’s comments in the United States Senate about the 2019 measles outbreak in Samoa are a “complete lie”. The country’s health boss called the appointment of Kennedy as health secretary a “disaster for public health in the world”.
The recent Senate confirmation hearings for Robert F. Kennedy Jr. presented a striking scene that would confuse a time traveler from 10 years ago. Democratic lawmakers took turns excoriating a man who once embodied their ideals. Sen. Bernie Sanders, seemingly grasping for gotchas, was reduced to questioning Kennedy about baby clothing merchandise.
The deadly Samoan measles outbreak in 2019 has been raised during the confirmation hearings for Robert F. Kennedy jnr in the US Senate. Kennedy is US President Donald Trump’s controversial pick to lead the Department of Health and Human Services.
“He went there and used celebrity status to scare the country away from vaccinating,” Green said of Kennedy. “You have to ask yourself, ‘Why, RFK Jr., would you go to Samoa and do this to ...
During his confirmation hearing, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. denied Gov. Josh Green’s allegation that he caused many deaths in Samoa by discouraging the measles vaccine.
FILE – Prime Minister Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi, foreground right, shakes hands with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. before he left the the 57th Independence Celebration in Mulinu’u, Samoa ...
Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., President Trump's nominee to serve as Secretary of Health and Human Services testifies during a Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions hearing for his pending confirmation, Jan. 30, 2025, in Washington.