Former CDC official: RFK Jr.'s response to measles "not based on science"

While unit astatine the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention were racing to halt the worst measles outbreak since 2000 past year, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his allies sought backward-looking information connected measles and its vaccine, a erstwhile apical CDC authoritative said. 

In an interrogation with "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan" connected Wednesday, erstwhile CDC Chief Medical Officer Dr. Debra Houry, 1 of 4 elder CDC officials who resigned successful protest past summer, said Kennedy and his allies were pushing retired accusation "not based connected subject oregon reality, but trying to reply an docket that was already successful place." 

More than 2,000 cases of measles were reported nationwide past year, including hundreds successful a West Texas outbreak linked to the deaths of 2 children. During that time, Kennedy aides asked Houry for years-old information connected radical with measles who had died. Houry told them successful an email that the "active measles effect has to instrumentality priority," according to a trove of recently released emails that she provided to the Senate wellness committee. 

"During each of that, we besides get requests for 15 years of information connected each azygous measles lawsuit and were determination immoderate different diseases that those radical had, that died from measles," she told CBS News. "Same time, a erstwhile radical of the secretary's enactment retired a connection saying that immoderate of the measles deaths weren't owed to measles. So, to me, it seemed similar they were looking done CDC data, these requests to reply immoderate questions from different organizations, oregon perchance beforehand their beliefs." 

At astir the aforesaid time, Houry besides expressed interest astir statements by Kennedy — a longtime vaccine skeptic — connected the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine. Kennedy spoke positively astir the vaccine astatine times, but besides made inaccurate claims astir its ingredients and promoted different treatments. In emails successful outpouring 2025, Houry asked Kennedy's aides whether wellness officials could "help him with his talking points." 

"He would accidental things similar there's fetal parts successful vaccines, and I had sent an email to close that, and said, however tin we assistance him?" Houry told "Face the Nation" astir trying to supply Kennedy with "appropriate talking points." There is no fetal debris successful vaccines.

CBS News has reached retired to the Department of Health and Human Services for comment.

Houry said she was acrophobic due to the fact that the dispersed of misinformation "impacts lives" and could person radical not to get the measles vaccine during an progressive outbreak. Some 93% of radical who contracted measles past twelvemonth were either unvaccinated oregon had an chartless vaccination status, according to CDC data. 

"We had children being hospitalized, we had children dying from measles," she said. "We needed radical to respond during a measles outbreak and get vaccinated if they weren't. Instead, helium talked astir healers and treatments around, like, steroids and antibiotics, and adjacent vitamin A." 

In TV appearances and an opinion piece connected Fox News, Kennedy declared that vitamin A was an effectual measles attraction and pointed to a CDC statement recommending the supplement. He besides claimed, "Studies person found that vitamin A tin dramatically trim measles mortality." 

"We really saw vitamin A toxicity cases successful hospitals. People were taking excessively overmuch vitamin A due to the fact that determination had been messaging that it was adjuvant for measles," she said.