Six former surgeons general criticized Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in a Tuesday op-ed in the Washington Post.
“The actions of [Kennedy] are endangering the health of the nation,” the group said. “Never before have we issued a joint public warning like this. But the profound, immediate and unprecedented threat that Kennedy’s policies and positions pose to the nation’s health cannot be ignored.”
The group included Vivek Murthy, Jerome Adams, Richard Carmona, David Satcher, Joycelyn Elders and Antonia Novello. Murthy, Elders and Satcher were appointed by Democratic presidents, while Adams, Carmona and Novello were appointed by Republican presidents.
In their op-ed, the former surgeons general said that under Kennedy, the “foundations of our nation’s public health system have been undermined.” They specifically criticized the HHS secretary’s longstanding claims that childhood vaccines are linked to autism, his handling of measles outbreaks throughout the country, his recommendation against pregnant women taking Tylenol and his upheaval of a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) vaccine advisory panel.
In June, Kennedy removed all 17 members of the CDC Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), saying it was necessary to restore trust in vaccines. Kennedy has since replaced those panel members with individuals who have expressed skepticism about the effectiveness of the COVID-19 vaccine.
ACIP recommendations must be approved by the CDC director before being implemented. In August, Kennedy removed Susan Monarez from the post after just weeks on the job. Monarez later said she refused to preapprove the committee’s decisions.
On Monday, the CDC accepted ACIP’s recommendation that individuals receive the COVID-19 vaccine after consulting with a health provider. Later in the day, acting CDC Director Jim O’Neill called on vaccine manufacturers to split up the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine into three separate shots, taking the same stance as President Trump.
These policies, overseen by Kennedy, have “misled the public and compromised the health of Americans,” the former surgeons general wrote.
“Rather than combating the rapid spread of health misinformation with facts and clarity, Kennedy is amplifying it,” they added. “The consequences aren’t abstract. They are measured in lives lost, disease outbreaks and an erosion of public trust that will take years to rebuild.”
The Hill has reached out to HHS for comment.
