RFK Jr.’s mixed message about the measles outbreaks draws criticism from health officials

By AMANDA SEITZ Associated Press WASHINGTON AP As measles outbreaks popped up across the U S this winter pediatricians waited for the nation s community robustness agency to send a routine but crucial letter that outlines how they could help stop the spread of the illness It wasn t until last week after the number of cases grew to more than and a second young child in Texas had died from a measles infection that the Centers for Complaint Control and Prevention absolutely issued its correspondence The delay of that letter may seem minor But it is one in a string of missteps that more than a dozen doctors nurses and society strength leaders interviewed by The Associated Press identified in the Trump administration s response to the outbreak Medical secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr s efforts to contain an epidemic in a tight-knit religious district in West Texas have run counter to established general fitness strategies deployed to end past epidemics What we are lacking now is one clear strong voice from the federal to the state to the local saying that the vaccine is the only thing that will prevent measles explained Patricia Stinchfield a nurse and infectious complaint expert who helped stop a measles outbreak in Minnesota s Somali region An extremely extraordinary approach to the outbreak Behind the scenes Kennedy has not been regularly briefed in person on the outbreak by his own infectious affection experts at the CDC at least through March according to Kevin Griffis a career staffer who worked as the agency s communications director until he resigned that day Related Articles Colorado s new barrier to own semiautomatic guns is unconstitutional Letters Review of decision not to award Space Command to Alabama inconclusive with Trump reversal expected DOGE trumpets unemployment fraud that the governing body already determined years ago US judge presses Trump administration on its refusal to return Kilmar Abrego Garcia Visa cancellations sow panic for international students with hundreds fearing deportation Even after the measles claimed its first young Texas victim in late February Kennedy had still not been briefed by CDC staff Griffis disclosed His account was verified by a second former federal medical official who resigned at the end of February A spokesperson for Kennedy did not answer specific written questions about how he had been briefed or his communications with CDC staff The spokesperson mentioned the CDC activated an Atlanta-based response in early February to provide overall guidance on measles testing and vaccination strategy An on-the-ground squad was deployed to West Texas throughout the majority of March and withdrawn on April It was a joint decision between state and federal officers to send the organization home CDC spokesman Jason McDonald explained Another club of seven was dispatched back to the region this week In previous administrations strength secretaries held weekly briefings with CDC staff lasting between and minutes during infectious illness outbreaks both former HHS bureaucrats revealed Kennedy instead received updates on paper or through email Griffis stated That is extremely extraordinary mentioned Griffis who sat in on such briefings with the previous fitness secretary and reported that none were held for Kennedy during his first month on the job I ve never seen that before In another irregularity the American Academy of Pediatrics the nation s largest grid of pediatricians has not been tapped to work with the CDC on the outbreak according to the organization s personnel Historically the CDC and AAP have convened for monthly or biweekly briefings during outbreaks to share updates which include details about what doctors are seeing and questions they re fielding from parents in exam rooms The functionaries spoke on the condition of anonymity to freely discuss the physical condition department s response The only updates provided widely to pediatricians by the CDC have come from a strength alert setup update sent on March a week after the first U S measles death in a decade and the letter sent to providers last week which according to the pediatric academy executives was late in the outbreak Kennedy praised the CDC on Tuesday during an event in Indianapolis saying it had done a very good job controlling the measles outbreak Kennedy endorses vaccines but still raises safety doubts Kennedy s inconsistent and unclear message on the measles vaccines has also made the outbreaks laborious to contain experts say He has occasionally endorsed the measles mumps and rubella vaccine as effective but also continues to raise safety concerns about the shots in other statements In a CBS interview last week he claimed the vaccines were not safety tested That approach has been the biggest flaw of the ruling body s response revealed Dr Carlos del Rio the president of the Infectious Infection Society of America Imagine if the captain of the Titanic had reported you that you need to be careful about lifeboats and think about other opportunities del Rio announced Trials were conducted on thousands of children before the vaccine was approved for use in the s The federal leadership has since used physiological records to continue to monitor for side effects from use in millions of people since Vitality secretaries have typically delivered a clear message urging the inhabitants to get vaccinated during outbreaks mentioned Dr Anne Schuchat a former deputy director at the CDC who retired after years at the agency in President Donald Trump and his first-term vitality secretary Alex Azar urged people to get shots during news conferences in when measles ripped through Brooklyn and infected more than nationwide You don t necessarily need the secretary of strength to attend a funeral OK but you don t want to have mixed messages on vaccines Schuchat commented Someone in a federal building in Washington can do a lot of harm from the way that they are messaging Texas Gov Greg Abbott also quiet on vaccines Local leaders have largely been left alone to urge the inhabitants to take up vaccinations Texas Gov Greg Abbott a Republican has not urged the constituents to get vaccinated either He has not held any news conferences about the outbreak and posted just once on social media about measles since January Any statements about the illnesses which have also put people in the hospital at a few point have been left to his aides Abbott s office did not respond to questions about his response to the outbreak Governors in other states have responded more forcefully to the growing measles event count Hawaii Gov Josh Green a Democrat and a medical professional made front page news last week after urging Hawaiians to take up vaccines when the state recorded its first measles situation in a year Ahead of a busy advance week for the Easter holiday Nebraska Gov Jim Pillen a Republican unequivocally called on people to vaccinate themselves and their children There are no known measles cases in Nebraska but an outbreak is operational in neighboring Kansas If you re not vaccinated you re going to get measles Pillen revealed last week Those types of statements are essential for the society to hear leaders say from the top down declared Dr Oxiris Barbot who was New York City s vitality commissioner during the measles outbreak Barbot worked with local rabbis as well as doctors and nurses in the Jewish neighborhood to send messages that encouraged vaccine uptake Calls from Trump and Azar who urged the community to vaccinate helped her make the scenario too When national leaders distance themselves from that message she reported it starts to erode the effectiveness of people who are trying to convey those messages at the local level Associated Press writers Paul Weber in Austin Texas Devi Shastri in Milwaukee and Margery Beck in Omaha contributed to this review