As one of the world’s leading anti-vaccine propagandists, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. should have long been disqualified from holding public office. His positions on vaccines, which the Atlantic accurately describes as “controversial,” should alarm health experts and policymakers. Until this year, Kennedy chaired the anti-vaccine grifter organization Children’s Health Defense. He has been the chief purveyor of misinformation regarding the safety and efficacy of all vaccines.
Most recently, Kennedy wrote to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and demanded that the FDA revoke the licenses of every one of the Covid-19 vaccines. His attacks on mRNA vaccines have been among the most extreme, calling them the “deadliest vaccines in history.” In 2021, he claimed that half of those experiencing the rare side effect of myocarditis could die or require heart transplants within five years. Vaccine misinformation like this has been condemned in the strongest possible terms by the scientific community, which unanimously agrees that vaccines are safe.
Kennedy’s rhetoric became truly dangerous when he invoked Nazi oppression during World War II to rail against vaccine mandates. This worst-case-scenario analogy has generated criticism from a wide range of industries. Public health officials and legislators claim that it diminishes the severity of real historical atrocities and erodes trust in valuable vaccination programs.
His actions are groundbreaking and have major impacts on the health of the public. Kennedy ended $500 million in research awards for mRNA vaccines. This decision stymies research-critical efforts and further fuels an increasing skepticism towards these vaccines. His approach is creating skepticism, experts caution. This skepticism has the potential to decrease vaccination uptake and harm public health.
So much so that during his own Senate confirmation hearings, Kennedy so far admitted that no Covid vaccine prevents all infection. He admitted that Covid vaccines have saved lives among billions of people around the world. This admission is a stunning about-face from his earlier statements. It otherwise makes for a clear, easily-digestible read that spotlights the chasm between his grandstanding and accepted science.
Kennedy’s record of opposing childhood vaccine schedules and calling for repeal of measles vaccine mandates add to the confusion surrounding his candidacy. His views are at odds with the consensus of scientists and public health professionals alike. This divergence should prompt serious questions about how his policies might negatively affect public health.
In response to concerns about his approach, Kennedy stated, “I’m going to empower the scientists at HHS to do their job and make sure that we have good science that is evidence based … I’m not going to substitute my judgment for science.” Critics claim that his actions are at odds with his professed dedication to sound science. They cite his long history of spreading debunked and dangerous vaccine misinformation as proof.
This year’s 2023 Nobel Prize recognized the scientists who invented the mRNA Covid vaccine. It’s fitting that we end the year recognizing this exciting work − and the scientific community’s clear recognition of this technology’s huge potential. This recognition sharply contradicts Kennedy’s claims and draws attention to the complexity of vaccine safety and efficacy, a topic still widely debated today.