The good news is that people are talking about the value of vaccines – and let’s be honest -- we have Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. to thank for it. Public health makes for strange bedfellows – and some are stranger than others.
The raucous public health environment caused by Secretary Kennedy’s radical handling of many issues ranging from the reconstitution of the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices to the FDA’s controversial comments on mRNA vaccine technology, the debate over mifepristone, and acetaminophen’s highly questionable link to autism have led to a long-overdue robust national conversations about sound science and smart public health policy These days no one can claim their side of the argument is being ignored and, for a change, the media is paying attention. It’s not geeky academic droning anymore. It’s blood sport and the stakes couldn’t be higher. The results, to date, have been aggravating, angering, and enervating.
But the vigorous dialogue and debate have also been a refreshing and positive development. Rather than just complaining, advocates of sound science and smart public health policy are stepping up with solutions rather than sarcasm. The bow ties are off and the boxing gloves are on.
There are three issues at the very top of the public health agenda (and with which I strongly disagree with Mr. Kennedy’s positions): the importance of the annual flu shot, Covid-19 boosters and, most urgently, our nation’s Number One heath priority – childhood vaccination and the vaccination schedule for measles, mumps, rubella, and varicella. These conversations, until recently exiled to the dusty pages of medical journals, late-night public service announcements, and dog-eared posters in pediatricians’ offices, are now front-page news and front and center kitchen table conversation. It’s about time.
And it’s more than just talk. Municipal and state public health departments, regional state consortia (across the red and blue divide), national chain pharmacies, hospitals, and insurance companies are deciding to follow true-north science rather than the new and controversial CDC advice supported by RFK, Jr.’s hand-picked appointees. The public health ecosystem is beginning to put its reputation and resources where its mouth is, recommending and reimbursing for aggressive vaccination programs that are being either ignored or denigrated by Secretary Kennedy. It’s time for more city and state health leaders to stand up and be counted. It’s the gutsy thing to do. It’s the right thing to do.
As Secretary Kennedy regularly reminds us, his efforts are about empowering people to make their own best choices. I support that 100%. But the stakes are too high to allow elitist sneering or wallowing in the mire of childish name-calling or playing fast and loose with the facts. In the words of Dwight Eisenhower, “You do not lead by hitting people over the head – that’s assault, not leadership.” Open dialogue between those with divergent viewpoints is critical if we’re going to reach the right conclusions.
Secretary Kennedy has thrown down the gauntlet. Game on. It's high time for a fact-based public health rumble.
Peter J. Pitts is President of the Center for Medicine in the Public Interest and a former FDA Associate Commissioner.
