Condemn RFK’s Attacks on Vaccines, Research, and the Autism Community (UPDATED 6/2)
Updates
June 2, 2025: RFK Jr.’s anti-vaccine beliefs have now led to the cancellation of a contract to develop a bird flu vaccine and changes to covid-19 vaccine recommendations. The agency also issued a report to back up their claims about children’s health that cited studies that do not exist.
May 6, 2025: RFK Jr. announced that he will direct federal agencies to explore new treatments for measles despite the strong historical efficacy of the vaccine. He also announced that trials for new vaccines must undergo placebo testing, a move that will not only delay the development of COVID-19 and flu vaccines but also endanger participants.s.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s tenure as Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has been rife with blatant attacks on science and public health. Under his so-called leadership, biomedical research through the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has stalled, and further budget reductions and terminations of important studies, including the largest NIH study focused on women’s health, threaten to derail scientific progress for decades. Entire agencies within HHS have been haphazardly gutted or are slated to be eliminated, hindering our nation’s ability to fight infectious disease, treat substance use disorders, and address other emerging public health threats.
Besides dismantling of our nation’s public health and biomedical research infrastructure, Kennedy has also spread lies about vaccines and defunded childhood vaccination programs as a preventable and deadly measles outbreak continues to rage. He has also made frankly despicable statements about autism spectrum disorder, claiming it is a preventable disease and suggesting that people with autism (or, by extension, any level of disability) cannot lead meaningful lives. And while Kennedy’s HHS denies that they will combine private and public health data to create an autism “registry”, Kennedy is pushing forward with his own “massive testing and research effort” that will surely be used to validate his own false narrative.
Kennedy is a threat to scientific integrity, public health, and the lives of those served by HHS research and programs. Congress must hold him accountable for his careless statements and actions that are endangering the health and safety of every American.
Contacts for this topic:
Hi, my name is [NAME] and I’m a constituent from [CITY, ZIP].
I’m calling [REP/SEN NAME] to express my outrage over RFK Jr.’s false and dangerous misinformation about vaccines, autism, and the gutting of necessary scientific research happening under his watch. I ask that [REP/SEN NAME]…
[CHOOSE 1-3 actions:]
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work to protect the public’s access to covid-19 and measles vaccines and the development of new ones for bird flu and other pandemic threats,(and)
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condemn RFK Jr.’s harmful statements about the autism community and conduct oversight hearings to ensure Americans’ private health information is protected, (and)
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protect the funding of HHS agencies and important scientific research studies dedicated to public health, (and)
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demand the immediate resignation of RFK Jr. as the head of HHS. His actions directly threaten the health and well-being of all Americans.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
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