607 Cases of Infection Reported in 22 States This Year
97% of Outbreak Patients Were Unvaccinated
As cases of child deaths due to measles spread in the United States continue, Robert Kennedy Jr., the Secretary of Health and Human Services known for his 'vaccine skepticism,' has changed his stance and emphasized the necessity of vaccination, stating that "the most effective way to prevent the spread of measles is the MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) vaccine."
On the 6th (local time), the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced that a total of 607 measles infection cases have been confirmed in 22 states across the U.S. as of the 3rd of this year. Among these, 567 cases, accounting for 93%, are related to major regional outbreaks. This is a significant increase compared to last year's total of 285 measles cases, of which 198 cases (69%) were outbreak-related.
On the same day, the Associated Press and other media reported that a third death has occurred following this measles outbreak. The deceased, like the first fatality, was a school-age child who had not been vaccinated. Earlier in late February, the U.S. recorded its first measles death in 10 years, and the recently deceased child was also a resident of the western Texas area, the same region as the first fatality.
U.S. media reported that 97% of the outbreak patients were unvaccinated, raising questions about Secretary Kennedy's responsibility, who had propagated 'vaccine skepticism.' As the son of former Attorney General Robert Kennedy and a member of the Kennedy family, Secretary Kennedy previously claimed conspiracy theories related to vaccines, such as "vaccines cause autism," and recently stirred controversy again over measles. Initially, during the early stages of the measles outbreak, he responded with "it's no big deal," but changed his stance to prioritize the issue only after the situation worsened. However, he has consistently maintained that "vaccination is a matter of personal choice." In an interview with Fox News earlier last month, Kennedy stated that "the measles outbreak in Texas is influenced by malnutrition," and announced plans to conduct clinical trials on alternative treatments using dietary supplements rich in vitamin A, such as cod liver oil.
Experts criticized these remarks by the Secretary as hindering infectious disease response efforts. Doctors at a children's hospital in western Texas, where the first measles death occurred, reported that after examining unvaccinated children with measles, many were found to have liver problems due to vitamin A toxicity.
As the controversy grew, Secretary Kennedy posted on X (formerly Twitter) in the afternoon, saying, "I came today to console the family of the child who died of measles in Gaines County, Texas," and wrote, "The most effective way to prevent the spread of measles is the MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) vaccine." He added, "Since early March, the CDC team has been deployed to strengthen measles response capabilities in various parts of Texas and is supplying MMR vaccines and other medicines."
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