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The pursuing is the transcript of the interrogation with Jerome Adams, surgeon wide successful the archetypal Trump administration, that aired connected "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan" connected March 29, 2026.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Welcome backmost to Face the Nation. We crook present to erstwhile U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Jerome Adams, who joins america this greeting from Indianapolis. Good greeting to you, Doctor.
FORMER U.S. SURGEON GENERAL DR. JEROME ADAMS: Thanks for having me, Margaret. And I'd similar to commencement by saying that the astir important happening for your viewers to recognize is that America's astir pressing wellness menace contiguous isn't opioids oregon obesity, it's mistrust. Seventy percent of Americans accidental they enactment puerility vaccines and schoolhouse mandates. Yet a akin bulk accidental they bash not spot wellness accusation from Robert Kennedy and accidental they would not spot Surgeon General nominee Casey Means. So a nonaccomplishment to admit this plummeting trust, oregon worse, if we're seeing to accelerate it, is going to wounded Americans. And actually, Margaret, according to Republican pollster Fabrizio Ward, it's going to wounded Republicans successful November elections.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Well, that's not wherever I was going with the question. But yes, I've seen immoderate of that polling. And it says that the MAHA wellness guidance resonates much with voters than the vaccine skepticism. So Republicans look to beryllium signaling what would beryllium much resonant with the bulk of voters. But successful presumption of the argumentation astatine this infinitesimal successful time, you were President Trump's surgeon wide during his archetypal term. There are present much than 1,500 confirmed measle cases successful the U.S. since January, according to the CDC. There is this spike retired successful Utah. Why can't the existing wellness infrastructure halt this?
DR. ADAMS: Well, that's a large question. And you person to commencement disconnected by knowing that astir 20,000 radical person been chopped from HHS. And truthful normally, we person measles cases each year. We had astir 250 successful 2024. We had astir 2,000 past year. As you mentioned, we're astatine 1,500 already this year. But normally, we're capable to power those outbreaks due to the fact that of the CDC, due to the fact that of nationalist wellness infrastructure successful funding. All of that has been cut. And present alternatively of 1 lawsuit turning into 2 oregon 3 and being stopped, it's turning into 20, and 50 and 100 cases. And we're besides seeing falling vaccination rates, a wide radical of states are falling beneath that 95% threshold for herd immunity for measles. Utah, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, each beneath that 95% threshold. And the further we get beneath that, the much these outbreaks explode.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Well, you mentioned the memo. This was a pollster who continues to consult for the president and for Republicans, Tony Fabrizio. In the memo, helium writes, policies related to vaccines and vaccine information request to beryllium addressed cautiously and with nuance. That's due to the fact that overall, a slim bulk of voters are not convinced determination are antagonistic wellness impacts from vaccines. He was speaking astir however MAHA and MAGA request to proceed to enactment unneurotic for the payment of the Republican Party. But by saying there's a slim bulk who are unconvinced, he's making it dependable similar your enactment truly is struggling with this, frankly.
DR. ADAMS: Well, they perfectly are. And I recognize wherefore parents are frustrated with the wellness attraction system. It is not moving for people. And we've always, arsenic physicians, been taught to respect diligent autonomy. But the quality present is you're seeing a wellness caput and an infrastructure that is actively sowing distrust successful vaccines and successful the healthcare system. I judge we tin bash both. I judge we tin respect patients' autonomy. We request to marque definite we're facilitating those conversations betwixt patients and their doctors oregon their pharmacists oregon nurses, portion astatine the aforesaid clip telling radical what we cognize to beryllium true. And that is that puerility vaccines similar measles, mumps, rubella, are safe, they're effective, and they're the astir important nationalist wellness accomplishment of our lifetimes. We're not going to marque America healthier if we spell backwards connected vaccines.
MARGARET BRENNAN: So the seat of the wellness committee, Senator Bill Cassidy, who's besides a physician, asked Casey Means, she is the doc you referenced, who is the prime of the Trump medication to beryllium the adjacent surgeon general. He asked her whether she would urge a parent vaccinate her kid against measles. Here's the portion of the speech from her confirmation hearing.
[SOUND ON TAPE BEGINS]
SEN. BILL CASSIDY (R-LA): You're the nation's doctor. Would you promote her to person her kid vaccinated?
DR. CASEY MEANS: I'm not an individual's doc and each idiosyncratic needs to speech to their doc earlier putting a medicine successful their body. I perfectly americium supportive of the measles vaccine and I bash judge vaccines prevention lives and are an important portion of the nationalist wellness strategy.
[SOUND ON TAPE ENDS]
MARGARET BRENNAN: So the doc did accidental she is supporter- supportive of the measles vaccine. Why does that halt abbreviated of what you would privation to perceive from idiosyncratic successful that role?
DR. ADAMS: Well, fig one, I watched the hearing. This was aft overmuch pressing and equivocating, fig one. And she said she's not an individualist doctor. That is correct. But you're applying to beryllium the nation's doctor. For me, this isn't idiosyncratic oregon political, fig one, and I've talked to you astir this, it's astir her not having the basal qualifications to bash the job. She does not person an progressive aesculapian licence and would beryllium the archetypal surgeon wide ever to beryllium successful the relation to not person an progressive aesculapian license. But beyond that, to the constituent you brought up, successful the midst of a monolithic measles outbreak, America needs a surgeon wide who tin intelligibly basal down vaccines. When I came in, we had the opioid epidemic and an overdose crisis. Imagine if I had said, you know, arsenic surgeon general, it's not my spot to archer radical to instrumentality naloxone, the opioid overdose reversal agent, they should speech to their doc astir it. That would not beryllium acceptable successful that circumstance, and it's not acceptable to person a surgeon wide who equivocates connected vaccines, overmuch little 1 who can't really signifier medicine and conscionable the qualifications to beryllium a doc successful the court.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Well, the doc seemingly has an inactive aesculapian licence that she says she voluntarily placed connected inactive status. And I privation to speech astir this due to the fact that it seems a feature, not a bug, right? Because the HHS caput has described Dr. Means arsenic being cleanable for this job. He says the surgeon wide is simply a awesome of motivation authorization who stands against the fiscal and organization gravities that corporatize medicine. He said she was a large pupil and surgical resident, but she near accepted medicine due to the fact that patients weren't getting better, and that's wherefore she should beryllium the disruptor successful this moment. So erstwhile you accidental there's distrust, however bash you respond to those who accidental disruption is the intent of this selection?
DR. ADAMS: Well, again, fig one, a caller Axios canvass came out, and that canvass showed that 68% of radical who were questioned said they would not spot wellness proposal from a Surgeon General Casey Means. So you're not going to reconstruct spot if preemptively the nationalist is telling you we're not trusting the idiosyncratic you're putting forward. And again, I don't privation to underplay this. Every physician, each nurse, each pharmacist and the Public Health Service Corps has to support an progressive license. I had to occurrence radical for not having an progressive aesculapian license. So this is not astir disruption. Casey Means tin beryllium a portion of this administration. She tin counsel the White House. She tin counsel Secretary Kennedy, arsenic her member does. But that does not mean she's qualified to beryllium surgeon wide of the United States aft dropping retired of her residency and not having an progressive license.
MARGARET BRENMAM: Yeah, and conscionable a note, determination is besides nary Senate-confirmed CDC manager presently amid the crisis. Let maine inquire you astir societal media arsenic well, due to the fact that determination were these large cases this past week. A New Mexico assemblage recovered that Meta platforms violated user extortion laws by misleading users astir the information of Facebook, of Instagram, and of WhatsApp. Out successful California, determination was different suit linking Meta to a young woman's depression. As a doctor, are you convinced that societal media has a nonstop nexus to health?
DR. ADAMS: As a doc and arsenic a parent, I'm convinced of these facts. I person 3 teenage kids. We know, based connected Surgeon General Murthy's report, that determination is expanding and precise valid grounds retired determination showing links betwixt societal media use, peculiarly astatine a younger age, and expanding anxiety, expanding depression, little sleep, which really leads to intelligence wellness problems and besides obesity. And truthful we request to, arsenic a society, recognize the harms that are coming from societal media, likewise to the harms that surgeon generals person pointed retired earlier coming from cigarettes. We besides request to, akin to cigarettes, constituent retired the information that these substances, meaning societal media platforms, are incredibly addictive. And we're proceeding again successful these lawsuits that they were specifically designed to addict children, again, the mode cigaret manufacturers tried to addict children backmost successful the day.
So, I'm blessed that we're having a speech astir this. The argumentation is going to beryllium hard, but Australia has already done it. They've banned societal media for radical nether 16. You person 25 states, I believe, that are to the constituent wherever they're discussing oregon person authorities keeping societal media and phones retired of schools. And we request to to truly recognize the harm that's occurring to our children due to the fact that of this unfettered entree to surface clip and societal media.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Before I fto you go, Secretary Kennedy spoke to the Conservative Political Action Conference yesterday. He said he's disquieted astir cellphones and recommends parents don't fto their kids slumber with phones beside the bed. Would you hold with that recommendation?
DR. ADAMS: Yes. Actually, AAP, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Health Department of California, each accidental that we should not let cellphones successful children's bedrooms. It keeps them up astatine nighttime and subjects them to bullying constantly. And yes, it is simply a bully practice. And I hold with the caput connected this. I privation to find communal crushed with the secretary. This is 1 spot wherever we hold we should not beryllium exposing young radical to cellphones and societal media, peculiarly successful their bedrooms astatine night.
MARGARET BRENNAN: All right, Doctor, convey you for your insights today. We'll beryllium close back.
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