--- title: "As Measles Outbreak Spreads, RFK Jr. Reverses Message and Urges Vaccination" description: "Avowed vaccine hater Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. appears to be walking back his own skepticism amid a massive measles outbreak in Texas." date: "2025-03-03" modified: "2025-03-03" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/neoscope/rfk-jr-measles-recommends-vaccination-mmr" categories: - "Health & Medicine" tags: - "anti-vax" - "measles" - "rfk jr" - "vaccines" --- # As Measles Outbreak Spreads, RFK Jr. Reverses Message and Urges Vaccination ![Avowed vaccine hater Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. appears to be walking back his own skepticism amid a massive measles outbreak in Texas.]() *\Image: Jim Watson / AFP via Getty / Futurism\* Longtime [vaccine hater]() Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. appears to be walking back his own skepticism amid a [significant measles outbreak]() spanning [states including]() Texas, California, New Jersey, and more. In an [op-ed for *Fox News*]() — yes, the same media giant that's [spent years ]()[fearmongering]() about vaccines — the new Health and Human Services secretary said it was "crucial" that everyone gets the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine after a [school-aged child in the Longhorn State]() became the "first measles-related fatality in the United States in over a decade." The [allegedly brainwormed]() health secretary didn't mention that the deceased child [wasn't vaccinated against MMR]() — or that last week, when asked about that child's death, he claimed that measles outbreaks are "[not unusual]()." "We have measles outbreaks every year," the political scion said during his first-ever meeting of cabinet secretaries. "There are two people who have died, but we are watching it." It's unclear whether Kennedy simply misspoke when referring to an additional measles death or if he was aware of something we're not. What is clear, however, is that he's done an about-face in the days since that flippant remark — and that his own vaccine skepticism is glaringly absent from his more recent messaging about MMR. When appearing before the Senate Finance Committee for his confirmation hearings in January, RFK Jr. [attempted to distance himself]() from the "antivax" label by noting that all of his children were vaccinated. The new HHS secretary conveniently forgot to mention that he previously claimed to regret getting his kids vaccinated — and that he [used to be chairman]() of Children's Health Defense, an influential anti-vaccine nonprofit that got [kicked off of Instagram and Facebook]() in 2022 for spreading medical disinformation. "What would I do if I could go back in time and I could avoid giving my children the vaccines that I gave them?" Kennedy said in a [2020 podcast appearance]() on behalf of Children's Health Defense. "I would do anything for that. I would pay anything to be able to do that." Despite paying lip service to the "crucial" nature of vaccines to stop the spread of the [highly contagious measles disease](), the HHS secretary let the mask slip momentarily in his op-ed. "The decision to vaccinate," Kennedy wrote for *Fox*, "is a personal one." **More on RFK:** [*Trump Said We Should Kill Drug Dealers. Then He Appointed One as Health Secretary*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've often been drawn to unpacking the narratives that underlie technological, scientific and medical progress, with a special interest in areas of conflict and ambiguity that end up setting agendas and steering the fates of both elites and the hoi polloi. I'm a committed generalist, but I often find myself returning to work involving NASA and the private space sector, the effects of AI on media and society, and the mechanics of the pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on the spread of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Prior to Futurism, I worked for publications ranging from Media Matters and Truthdig to Raw Story and Bustle. I'm also the author of "Myspace Scene Queens," a 2024 title in Instar Books' acclaimed "Remember the Internet" series. My work at Futurism has been cited by outlets including the New Yorker, Slate, Nieman Lab, the Verge, the MIT Technology Review, the Sunday Times, and the Daily Beast. I grew up in North Carolina, attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and now live in Brooklyn, New York. In my free time, I'm an avid reader and music fan; you can probably find me at a local poetry reading, concert, underground rave, or DJ set. I'm the proud parent of an ineffable orange cat named Mee-Mow. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()