Health experts, former CDC directors, and medical associations are gravely concerned that HHS Secretary RFK Jr.’s actions are risking Americans’ health and wellbeing. Nine former directors of the CDC from both Republican and Democratic administrations warned that Secretary Kennedy’s leadership is a threat to Americans’ health. Another 1,000+ current and former HHS staff have called for Kennedy’s resignation due to his actions that “are compromising the health of this nation.”
The new public health leadership’s efforts to dismantle the evidence-backed support for vaccinations exemplifies their concerns. Kennedy overhauled Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), firing the entire panel shortly after he took office. He cited “conflicts of interest” for the dismantling of the committee, which were actually found to be “historically low” but served as the perfect pretext for his unprecedented move. He replaced the committee with fellow vaccineskeptics.
The vaccine misinformation these skeptics rely upon, and the resulting vaccine hesitancy it spurns, has helped drive the largest measlesoutbreak in over 30 years. Measles is a serious illness that, before vaccines, routinely caused up to 500 deaths every year. With the measles vaccine, these deaths can now be prevented.
Unfortunately, it’s not just measles. Overall, the nine routine childhood vaccines are estimated to have prevented more than 1.1 million deathsin the U.S. between 1994 and 2023. Undermining vaccination rates will undermine these health achievements.
The HHS Secretary’s policies will also worsen patients’ financial wellbeing by potentially increasing Americans out-of-pocket healthcare costs, reducing access to vaccines for those patients who want them, and discouraging promising innovations.
When the ACIP makes vaccine recommendations these decisions also mean that health insurance will cover the full costs of these vaccines – patients pay no out-of-pocket costs. As the ACIP takes action to undermine vaccines and revisit recommendations, the coverage for some or all of these vaccines will change.
Vaccines that patients can currently get with no out-of-pocket costs could cost Americans hundreds of dollars, according to CDC data. American families will lose out. Parents will be forced to pay more for vaccinations or opt out of some vaccinations altogether due to the financial burden.
Not only would costs rise, but previously accessible vaccines may not be readily available to patients even if they decide to bear the higher prices. A recent study shows that 78% of Americans support vaccines, yet Americans asking for vaccines will have trouble accessing these products. Pharmacies like CVS and Walgreens are already reducing vaccine availability due to Kennedy’s agenda.
Disconcertingly, Kennedy’s unscientific rhetoric is also impacting medical innovation. His coordinated takedown of medical research includes slashing $500 million in funding for mRNA research. Scientists had been researching mRNA technologies, partly funded by the U.S. government, since 1985. These technologies are showing great promise treating pancreatic cancer, which is currently one of the “five most lethal cancers” with a 5-year relative survival rate of merely 13%. The technology may also help patients living with other cancers including melanoma, lung cancer, breast cancer, and prostate cancer.
This erratic defunding of mRNA research threatens these potential benefits. This anti-innovation signal will also discourage entrepreneurs from bringing other new biotech startups to market. The result will be a decline in the pace of breakthroughs and medical advancements stalling American innovation under Kennedy’s supervision.
RFK Jr.’s actions on vaccines are endangering Americans health, threatening to increase patients’ out-of-pocket costs, and disincentivizing innovation. While his tenure as head of the HHS has been short, the adverse consequences from his actions may be with us for the long-term.
