Democrats on the House Ways and Means Committee seized on public health policies enacted under Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Thursday and attempted to pin the rise in measles cases in the U.S. on Kennedy’s vaccine-skeptical rhetoric.
Rep. Linda Sanchez, D-Calif., went after changes to the childhood immunization schedule by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention — which falls under HHS — removing the universal recommendation for multiple shots. This was later temporarily blocked by a federal judge.
Sanchez referenced a measles outbreak that spread across West Texas last year, infecting more than 700 people and leading to the deaths of two unvaccinated school-aged children, the first U.S. deaths from measles in a decade.
Kennedy has long sown doubt in the safety and effectiveness of the measles, mumps, rubella (MMR) vaccine. Despite being a required vaccine in all states to attend public school, rates have been steadily decreasing over the last decade, CDC data shows.
“Do you agree with the majority of doctors that the measles vaccine could have saved that child’s life in Texas?” Sanchez asked, in reference to the first death.
“It’s possible, certainly,” Kennedy replied.
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. testifies during a hearing of the House Committee on Ways and Means on Capitol Hill, April 16, 2026 in Washington.
Heather Diehl/Getty Images
Sanchez went on, saying she was “appalled” by what she called Kennedy’s decision last year to end the CDC’s “pro-vaccine messaging,” referring to the CDC ending a flu vaccination campaign during Kennedy’s first full week as health secretary.
Sanchez claimed pausing the campaign was correlated with increases in preventable deaths, specifically among unvaccinated children who died from the flu. The lawmaker and secretary sparred over whether the decision was made at the direction of President Donald Trump.
“Did President Trump approve your decision to end the CDC’s pro-vaccine public messaging?”
“You’ve got a lot of misinformation there — first of all,” Kennedy said before being interrupted. “Let me respond to the statements that you’ve made,” he added.
“No, answer my question. Please, sir, I have limited time. Did President Trump approve your decision to end the CDC’s pro-vaccine public messaging?” Sanchez said.
After some back and forth, Kennedy claimed the U.S. has done a better job at handling measles than other countries.
“There’s a global measles epidemic. We’ve done better in preventing than any country in the world,” Kennedy claimed.
“There’s no country that has seen a bigger percentage increase than this country,” Sanchez responded.
“That’s not true. Mexico has three times our measles, and they have one [third] of our population,” Kennedy replied. “Canada has double the cases, and they have one-eighth of our population. We’ve done better at preventing measles than any country.”
Medical organizations and public health experts have been critical of the federal government’s response to the ongoing measles outbreak, including Health Secretary Kennedy’s delayed public acknowledgment that the measles vaccine helps prevent infection.
The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), which is a part of the World Health Organization, determined last year that Canada had lost its measles elimination status. Mexico and the U.S. are also at risk of losing their elimination status, given the continued outbreaks over the past 12 months.
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. testifies during a hearing of the House Committee on Ways and Means on Capitol Hill, April 16, 2026 in Washington.
Heather Diehl/Getty Images
“Did President Trump approve your decision to end the CDC’s pro-vaccine public messaging campaign?” Sanchez repeated.
“We’ve done better at preventing measles than any country in the world,” Kennedy claimed.
After more back and forth, Sanchez accused Kennedy of making “terrible” decisions affecting children’s lives.
Meanwhile, Rep. Mike Thompson, D-Calif., alleged that Kennedy is a dangerous conspiracy theorist, blaming him for undermining public health.
“Kids have died because measles is running rampant under your watch, in large part because President Trump allowed your conspiracy theories to run our public health,” Thompson told Kennedy.
“Americans need serious leadership, grounded in evidence and science. Instead, we have you and this President elevating misinformation and undermining basic public health,” he added.
Thompson said measles cases across the country were at roughly 500 during President Joe Biden’s four-year term, and the cases had hit 2,300 during Trump’s first year of his second term, with Kennedy leading the health department.
Medical organizations and public health experts have pointed to Kennedy’s vaccine-skeptical rhetoric, even before he became health secretary, as a likely driver for vaccine hesitancy across parts of the nation.
Kennedy is the founder of Children’s Health Defense, a vaccine-skeptical organization that has promoted views on vaccines that are not supported by scientific evidence.
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