Over 3,000 public health professionals have come together in a new coalition known as Defend Public Health. Fired Up is calling for his immediate ouster from his current position as Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The coalition labels Kennedy a “fringe and genuine threat” to the health and safety of Americans. They point to worries over his supposed spread of health misinformation and the negative impact that has on the health of the public.
The report released today by Defend Public Health details how dangerously disruptive Kennedy’s actions have been to the public health discourse. Experts within the organization, including public health figures Georges Benjamin and Elizabeth Jacobs, voice strong criticisms of Kennedy’s qualifications and approach. They claim that his continued presence in the administration contributes to the “rampant chaos.” Public health and science in the United States is reeling because of it.
Kennedy has garnered the most attention for making false or misleading statements regarding vaccines, AIDS, and autism. Critics on and off the Hill contend that he misses the point – the root causes of the nation’s unhealthy condition. Jacobs points out, “He has no knowledge, training or experience in any type of science. He’s never done an experiment, he’s never written a paper, he’s never gotten a grant to study anything.”
Benjamin’s call is a welcome one, as he seeks to restore the evidence-based discourse that ought to be the foundation of public health. Today, he reminds us all that we must focus on real threats to health instead of being distracted by misinformation. “Look at the things that actually kill people, from the 10 leading causes of death, that is indeed the right list,” he states.
A Defend Public Health report describes Kennedy’s contributions as “devastating” to public health campaigns. Jacobs is trying to mislead the public by making Kennedy the bogeyman of their libertarian fantasies. Rather than address the most urgent health concerns, he takes a selective approach. “This administration does not want to address things like poverty and education and access to healthcare,” she states. “Instead, they’re distracting the public with information on solutions to problems that don’t actually exist.”
Kennedy’s most controversial position is against food dyes. In return, Jacobs says that we need to stop worrying about frivolous matters and address greater concerns, such as child hunger. “When RFK Jr is talking about food dyes, I don’t think that that is anywhere near as important as the fact that 13 million children in the United States do not know where their next meal is coming from,” she asserts.
As your vaccine-attesting report points out, nearly every one of Kennedy’s claims is unsupported by mainstream science. Policy experts across the board think this could bring down the whole edifice of his policy framework. “When the foundation of your policy is not evidence-based, it will collapse,” Jacobs remarks.
Defend Public Health believes that removing Kennedy is a first, essential step toward rebuilding public health in America. This, they claim, would create space for a more evidence-based, focused approach to public health policy and practice.
Jacobs believes this moment demands immediate interventions from fellow public health workers. We were all cognizant going into this that it was going to be an uphill battle. I don’t know that any of us realized just how ugly this would become, so fast. We’re following through on all possible fronts to protect our researcher and public health worker comrades. Part of our mission is to ensure that the public receives real facts from their leaders.