--- title: "Anti-Vaxxers Aghast as RFK Jr. Admits That Vaccines Are Pretty Fantastic" description: "In the face of a major measles outbreak, HHS secretary Robert Kennedy Jr. has seemingly done a 180. Fellow anti-vaccine activists are furious." date: "2025-03-06" modified: "2025-03-06" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/neoscope/anti-vaxxers-aghast-rfk-jr-vaccines" categories: - "Developments" - "Health & Medicine" tags: - "measles" - "rfk jr" - "texas" - "vaccines" --- # Anti-Vaxxers Aghast as RFK Jr. Admits That Vaccines Are Pretty Fantastic ![In the face of a major measles outbreak, HHS secretary Robert Kennedy Jr. has seemingly done a 180. Fellow anti-vaccine activists are furious.]() *\Image: Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images\* Twenty-five years after it was [declared eliminated]() from the US thanks to a nationwide and highly effective vaccination program, a measles outbreak in Texas has health experts raising the alarm bells. As of Monday, there have been 146 confirmed cases in the state, including one death of a school-aged child, in the "first measles-related fatality in the United States in over a decade," according to a [statement]() by Robert Kennedy Jr., the Trump adminsitration's secretary of the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). It's a particularly bizarre situation, given Kennedy's [staunch anti-vaccine track record](). He's spent many years engaging in fearmongering campaigns surrounding vaccines, including ones targeting immunizations against measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) specifically, as [*Mother Jones* reports](). After visiting Samoa in 2019, where he [discussed the topic of vaccines]() and met with anti-vaccine activists, a massive measles outbreak ensued and 83 people died. At the time, he was chairman of an anti-vaxx nonprofit called Children's Health Defense, which called for a "natural experiment." He's even [written op-eds]() accusing MMR vaccine maker Merck of "chicanery." But in the face of a domestic catastrophe, Kennedy has seemingly done a 180. In an [op-ed for *Fox News*]() — which appears to be a carbon copy of the HHS statement linked above — Kennedy said that he was "deeply concerned" about the developing situation and that "vaccines not only protect individual children from measles, but also contribute to community immunity, protecting those who are unable to be vaccinated due to medical reasons." It's a massive flip-flop that has reportedly turned the anti-vaxx community, which Kennedy once rallied behind, on its head. Many of his supporters have been noticeably quiet following his outing as being pro-vaccine, and others have turned on him. "I’m waiting to hear the backstory," Silicon Valley entrepreneur and anti-vaccine activist Steve Kirsch, who started an entire Super PAC to support Kennedy's presidential run last year, [tweeted]() when asked about his opinion on Kennedy's *Fox News* op-ed. Others were far more outspoken about their dismay. "RFK, Jr. is going to bring in the next death shot, healthy people will be dropping dead, Trump will ignore the mass die-off, tout the bioweapon as a 'great accomplishment,' and MAGA will praise him," anti-vaccine activist and far-right influencer Stew Peters [tweeted](). Other anti-vaxxers latched onto Kennedy recommending "good nutrition" to fight "most chronic and infectious illnesses," as *Mother Jones* reports. "Studies have found to an external website that vitamin A can dramatically reduce measles mortality," Kennedy's statement reads, while also failing to mention that the evidence is inconclusive at best. While Kennedy's embracing of vaccines has alienated his fellow anti-vaccine activists, many health experts were alarmed by his suggestion that vitamin A could somehow fend off measles. "In fact, relying on vitamin A instead of the vaccine is not only dangerous and ineffective, but it puts children at serious risk," American Academy of Pediatrics president Sue Kressly [told the *Washington Post*](). "Taking too much vitamin A can cause serious health problems, including liver damage." "It could lead to the impression of a false equivalency," Baylor College of Medicine dean Peter Hotez added. "To make the best decision for your children, you can either vaccinate or give vitamin A... That would be highly misleading." Experts were also alarmed by Kennedy suggesting that the "decision to vaccinate is a personal one," despite decades of scientific evidence that they work and save lives. It's a sad state of affairs, with Kennedy even failing to relay basic health information to the public. During the recent Cabinet meeting, the HHS secretary [claimed that two individuals]() had died as a result of the outbreak. So far, only a single death has been confirmed by his own agency. **More on vaccines:** *[As Measles Outbreak Spreads, RFK Jr. Reverses Message and Urges Vaccination]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()