Model for world: RFK Jr boasts about his response to measles outbreak after attending funeral of a victim

US Health Secretary Rober F Kennedy Jr said on Wednesday that his response to a large measles outbreak in west Texas should be a “model for the world”. The remarks from the controversial politician came after Kennedy’s response to the outbreak had been widely criticized by epidemiologists and public health experts.

Not only this, the health secretary was boasting about his work in dealing with measles shortly after he attended the funeral of a third measles victim over the weekend. Experts argued that the political scion has failed to give a full-throated endorsement of an extremely effective vaccine, that cases appear to be severely undercounted and that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) officials were deployed late.

“The numbers continue to grow by the day, but … the growth rate has diminished substantially,” Kennedy told reporters during a press conference while promoting his health agenda through the American Southwest. “I would compare it to what’s happening in Europe now,” Kennedy continued, according to Politico. “They’ve had 127,000 cases and 37 deaths. And so, what we’re doing right here in the United States is a model for the rest of the world.”

Kennedy was referencing the figures released by the World Health Organization (WHO) in March which mentioned measles cases across 53 countries in Europe and Central Asia.

Experts react

Several experts highlighted that after RFK jr came into power, there was underreporting of the cases. “Measles is the most contagious illness that we know of and it is preventable,” said Susan Polan, associate executive director of the American Public Health Association. “What we’re seeing now… is a far, far undercount in terms of the actual number of cases," she added.

It is pertinent to note that before the current outbreak, the United States had not had a measles death since 2015. However, three people have now died as a result of the Texas outbreak, and nearly 500 people have gotten sick. Since measles has an average death rate of one to three per 1,000, public health officials believe cases are undercounted. Several doctors also mentioned that the measles vaccine is 97 per cent effective at preventing the disease.

While speaking to the press on Sunday, Kennedy said CDC staff would be redeployed to the outbreak in Texas. This week, Kennedy also said the best way to prevent measles is to get the vaccine. However, he continues to promote unproven therapies to cure measles on social media.

“We should have had more people on the ground – this should have been a priority for weeks and weeks,” said Polan. Measles was eliminated in the US back in 2000. However, anti-vaccine sentiments stoked for nearly a decade led to a dramatic increase in vaccine hesitancy.