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US Health Secretary Expresses Deep Concern Over Texas Measles Outbreak
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the United States’ top health official known for his skepticism of vaccines, has publicly supported the measles vaccine amid a deadly outbreak of the infectious disease in Texas.
In an opinion piece published by Fox News on Sunday, Kennedy stated he is “deeply concerned” about the outbreak, despite previously downplaying its severity by suggesting such occurrences are “not unusual.”
“Vaccines not only protect individual children from measles but also contribute to community immunity, safeguarding those who cannot be vaccinated for medical reasons,” Kennedy wrote. However, he emphasized that the decision to vaccinate remains “a personal one.”
The U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services noted that before the introduction of the MMR (measles, mumps, and rubella) vaccine, “virtually every child” in the U.S. contracted measles.
“For example, in the United States, from 1953 to 1962, there was an average of 530,217 confirmed cases and 440 deaths annually, resulting in a case fatality rate of 1 in 1,205 cases,” he wrote.
Last month, U.S. authorities reported the first measles-related death in the country in a decade. The fatality involved an unvaccinated school-aged child who was hospitalized with the disease in northwest Texas.
As of Friday, the Texas Department of State Health Services has identified 146 measles cases in the state since late January. Health officials have attributed the outbreak to a community of Mennonites, a Christian sect originating from the radical factions of the 16th-century Reformation.
Kennedy, who has previously promoted scientifically discredited research linking vaccines to autism, faced criticism last month for seemingly minimizing the outbreak by pointing out that several outbreaks have occurred this year.
Measles poses a significant risk to unvaccinated individuals, including young infants who are typically not eligible for immunization. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), about one in five unvaccinated Americans who contract measles require hospitalization, while approximately one in 20 children with the disease develop pneumonia.
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