Washington D.C. – Throughout his third of seven back-to-back Congressional hearings, Trump Health Secretary RFK Jr. continued his strategy of making stuff up and playing Jedi mind tricks when questioned on his failed record on everything from the measles crisis amid declining vaccination rates, skyrocketing health costs, and millions losing their insurance. Kayla Hancock, Director of Protect Our Care’s Public Health Project issued the following statement after the hearing:
“With a straight face, RFK Jr. claimed the worsening measles crisis has “nothing to do with me.” That’s news to community doctors who’ve dealt with 4,000 new measles since Kennedy’s nomination, mostly among the unvaccinated and many of whom took to heart his fabricated, deathly warnings against the MMR vaccine on national platforms. When RFK Jr. abuses his celebrity to smear vaccine safety despite no science backing it up, it works to scare people into vaccine hesitancy. Kenndy is the poster child for declining vaccination rates and the increasing spread of dangerous, preventable disease.
“With no shame, RFK Jr. repeatedly claimed Medicaid wasn’t touched by Trump’s big Ugly Bill when nearly a trillion dollars in health destroying Medicaid cuts are right there in black and white. Kennedy’s lie is certainly news to the three million Americans who’ve lost their Medicaid coverage since the law’s passage, the millions more who’ll be kicked off their health care when deeper cuts hit in 2027, the states now scrambling to pick up the tab, and the hundreds of hospitals now on the brink of closure — all to pay for more tax breaks for billionaires.
“Pathetically, RFK Jr. lied through his teeth that the over million Americans who have so far lost their health care under the Trump-GOP Big Ugly cuts were only undocumented immigrants, except for that minor detail that all undocumented immigrants are explicitly excluded by law from ACA coverage, Medicaid, and Medicare. Pretending the thousands of Americans losing their coverage every day thanks to Donald Trump don’t exist won’t make them go away or lower anyone’s costs.
“With no irony, RFK Jr. claimed gun violence is not a public health threat. That’s news to the families of the 12 children killed by gun violence every single day.
“With no decency, RFK Jr. accused a lawmaker of shedding ‘crocodile tears’ over the families who he belittled and upset by claiming “autism destroys families”. Meanwhile, Kennedy couldn’t help himself and defended his debunked claims of a Tylenol-autsim link.”
###