RFK Jr faces intense questions in US Senate on measles and flu deaths

Lead

Robert F Kennedy Jr, the US Health Secretary, faced intense questioning from lawmakers this week over his handling of the worst measles outbreak in decades and his long-held views on vaccines. The hearings, before the US House Ways and Means Committee and the Senate Finance Committee, saw Democrats accuse Kennedy of bungling the response to the outbreak and undermining the safety of childhood immunizations.

Kennedy, a longtime vaccine skeptic who does not hold a degree in medicine or public health, has overseen sweeping changes to routine vaccination recommendations and has promoted misinformation even amid the outbreak, according to The Guardian. He attempted to shift focus away from his vaccine agenda, instead emphasizing chronic disease and what he called "ending the era of federal policies that fuelled the chronic disease epidemic" in the US, as reported by BBC.

Coverage Comparison

The hearings received broad coverage from outlets including BBC and The Guardian. BBC's report focused on Kennedy's testimony before the House Ways and Means Committee, where lawmakers criticized his handling of the measles outbreak and his vaccine stance. The Guardian's coverage, across two articles, adopted a more critical tone, describing Kennedy as "controversial" and highlighting his promotion of "misinformation" and "dangerous conspiracy theories." While BBC noted the administration's proposed budget cuts, The Guardian delved into Kennedy's lack of medical credentials and his past racist comments, which were not mentioned in BBC's report.

All sources agreed on the central fact that Kennedy faced bipartisan criticism during his first hearing before Congress in months. However, they differed in emphasis: BBC highlighted Kennedy's opening remarks and the exchange with Representative Linda Sánchez, while The Guardian's Senate article focused on Senator Ron Wyden's sharp rebuke and Kennedy's refusal to release his agreements with pharmaceutical companies.

Key Claims

• Measles Outbreak Numbers: The US recorded 2,288 measles cases in 2025, the highest since the disease was declared eliminated in 2000, according to The Guardian. An additional 1,748 cases have been reported in 2026 so far, and a chart referenced by Representative Mike Thompson indicated nearly 4,000 cases in total under the Trump administration, as reported by BBC.

• Budget Cuts: The Trump administration has proposed cutting the Department of Health and Human Services budget by approximately $16 billion, a 12.5% decrease from last year, as reported by BBC. Kennedy's hearing before the House Ways and Means Committee was to present this proposal.

• Kennedy's Vaccine Stance: Kennedy has consistently sought to separate himself from responsibility for the measles outbreak, reiterating in the Senate hearing, "I had nothing to do with the measles outbreak here. We have limited our outbreak better than any country in the world," as quoted by The Guardian. He pointed to higher case numbers in Mexico and Canada, though public health specialists argued he failed to strongly promote vaccination and instead highlighted unproven treatments such as steroids, per The Guardian.

• Pharmaceutical Agreements: Senator Wyden pressed Kennedy on whether he would release his written agreements with pharmaceutical companies. Kennedy refused, saying, "Those agreements contain proprietary information and trade secrets," as reported by The Guardian.

Perspectives

Democratic Lawmakers' View

Democrats on both committees accused Kennedy of promoting misinformation and endangering public health. Representative Linda Sánchez challenged Kennedy directly, asking, "Did President Trump approve your decision to end CDC's pro-vaccine public messaging campaign?" and later said his decisions "impact very, very real lives, especially the lives of children," as reported by BBC. Senator Wyden accused Kennedy of using his platform to "make parents doubt themselves and doubt their doctors," adding that "vaccines save lives in America," per The Guardian.

Kennedy's Defense

Kennedy maintained that his focus is on chronic disease and challenging the status quo. In his opening remarks to the House committee, he said, "We stand at a generational turning point. Our children are the sickest generation in modern history," as reported by BBC. He defended his record on the measles outbreak, arguing the US managed it better than other countries, and dismissed lawmakers' questions as containing misinformation.

Public Health Experts

While no experts were directly quoted in the provided extracts, public health specialists have argued that Kennedy's failure to strongly promote vaccination and his emphasis on unproven treatments exacerbated the outbreak, according to The Guardian. The same article noted that the US could lose its measles elimination status if cases continue to rise.

Temporal Context

The hearings come as the Trump administration proposed significant cuts to health department budgets, and after a federal judge in March struck down many of Kennedy's changes to vaccine recommendations, finding that new members of an expert advisory panel had not been properly appointed, as reported by BBC. The administration has indicated it would appeal the ruling but has yet to do so.