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RFK Jr. says parents should vaccinate children against measles
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. urged parents to vaccinate children as measles cases topped 2,370, with outbreaks tied to falling immunization rates.
HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. urged parents to vaccinate their children against measles, stating during a CNN State of the Union interview that "parents should get their children vaccinated for measles" because the MMR vaccine is "effective" and stops infection in about 97% of cases.
The public call comes amid the largest U.S. measles surge in 35 years, with official CDC cases for 2026 reaching 2,371 infections—already surpassing the 2,289 cases recorded in all of 2025 and threatening the nation's official measles elimination status.
The statement marks a rare explicit endorsement from Kennedy, a prominent vaccine skeptic who has previously emphasized individual choice and questioned vaccine safety and longevity.
Kennedy refused to accept personal responsibility for the surge, telling host Dana Bash "absolutely not" when asked if his anti-vaccine rhetoric contributed, instead blaming religious communities that refuse shots and global conditions.
Public health experts welcomed the endorsement while criticizing broader comments, pointing out that Kennedy used other portions of the interview to make unproven assertions regarding the origin of viruses like RSV and Lyme disease.
In view of the increased number of measles cases in the United States, Secretary of Health Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has become a recommendation for vaccination. However, he is far from a change of mind.