Thursday, October 1, 2026
Every person on this planet worries about their health. We all want to grow old without any physical ailments or infirmities. To stay healthy, we rely mostly on our government, at all levels. We expect our leaders to promote programs that will keep us safe, and to find new ways to prevent us from being exposed to diseases that undermine our normal bodily functions.
To maintain a healthy society, we primarily look to the federal government for the latest in research and the newest vaccines and cures for diseases. For the most part, that responsibility falls on the shoulders of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the secretary of Health and Human Services in Washington. Based on Kennedy’s actions over the past seven months, I suggest you don’t go to sleep thinking that we have an effective health leader in D.C.
There are so many areas in which Kennedy has failed us to date that it’s hard to select the worst ones. Let’s start with the admission that the man in charge of your longevity made last winter, stating that people shouldn’t be looking to him for medical advice, because he’s not a medical expert. That has been the worst-kept secret in the country, as most of us know that Kennedy has a long history of fighting the use of vaccines with questionable theories. It is that much scarier given the fact that he is charged with the responsibility of keeping 340 million people healthy.
When Kennedy appeared before a congressional committee in February, he was asked whether he would retain the highly respected doctors who serve on the federal panel that makes vaccine recommendations. He pledged to keep the panel members, and it was that pledge that won one of the deciding votes to confirm him from Sen. Bill Cassidy, a Louisiana Republican who is also a doctor. In June, Kennedy, in violation of his promise, fired the entire panel and replaced its members with a number of recognized vaccine deniers.
In February, there was a serious outbreak of measles in west Texas, in a number of counties where residents were known to be anti-vaccine. The outbreak eventually spread to six other states, and the numbers turned out to be the highest recorded in recent memory. Kennedy initially — incorrectly — said that the outbreak was “not unusual,” and that “we have measles outbreaks every year.”
As the numbers rose, he changed his response in the worst possible way. Instead of using his position to encourage parents to get their children vaccinated, he issued a series of statements suggesting that vaccinations are a “personal choice.” As the number of cases kept climbing, he eventually caved, and suggested that parents should consider having their children vaccinated. Kennedy’s change of heart enraged the anti-vaxxers, but he couldn’t avoid the facts.
Kennedy’s latest attack on your life span was his decision earlier this month that 22 projects, totaling $500 million, to develop vaccines using mRNA technology, would be halted. He criticized vaccines in a video on his social media accounts, explaining his decision by characterizing the projects, being led by the nation’s leading pharmaceutical companies, including Pfizer and Moderna, to develop vaccines that offer protection against viruses like the flu, Covid-19 and H5N1 as “unnecessary.”
Infectious disease experts say the mRNA technology is safe, and they credit its use during the first Trump administration for slowing the coronavirus pandemic. Future pandemics, they warned, will be harder to stop without the help of mRNA. Mike Osterholm, a University of Minnesota expert on infectious diseases and pandemic preparations, said, “I don’t think I have seen a more dangerous decision in public health in my 50 years in the business.”
The shelving of the mRNA projects is considered short-sighted because there are continuing concerns about the bird flu becoming a pandemic, and because mRNA vaccines have saved millions of lives, according to Dr. Paul Offit, a vaccine expert at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.
These are but a few of the actions taken by Kennedy that raise serious questions about whether he is the right man for one of the most important jobs in America.
