THE INDEPENDENT – Longtime vaccine skeptic Robert F Kennedy Jr has urged people to get the measles jab after a deadly outbreak in Texas – having initially downplayed the rapid spread of the infectious disease.
Writing in a Fox News op-ed Sunday, the freshly-confirmed Department of Health and Human Service secretary championed the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine, touting its efficacy against the deadly virus.
“Measles outbreak is call to action for all of us,” reads the title, with the standfirst stating:
“MMR vaccine is crucial to avoiding potentially deadly disease.” In the article’s opening line, RFK Jr stated he is “deeply concerned about the recent measles outbreak.” He reflected on the days before the first measles vaccine was licensed for public use in the U.S. in 1963.
“Measles is a highly contagious respiratory virus that can cause severe complications, hospitalization, and death. In 2000, the United States declared measles eradicated, but cases still occur because of ongoing global spread and undervaccination, noted the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)-led study team. – CIDRAP – Center for Infectious Disease Research & Policy Research and Innovation Office, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN
“Prior to the introduction of the (MMR) vaccine in the 1960s, virtually every child in the United States contracted measles,” RFK Jr citing that from 1953 to 1962, there were an average of 530,217 confirmed cases and 440 deaths – a one in 1,205 cases fatality rate.
The Kennedy scion said that it is the government’s responsibility to ensure that accurate information is relayed about vaccine safety and efficacy, and pledged to “make vaccines readily accessible for all those who want them.”
He added: “Vaccines not only protect individual children from measles, but also contribute to community immunity, protecting those who are unable to be vaccinated due to medical reasons.
RFK Jr did, however, emphasize that the decision to vaccinate is “a personal one.”
According to the latest figures from the Texas Department of Health and Human Services released Friday, 146 measles cases have been identified since late January – a majority of whom appear to be unvaccinated …
“Receipt of 1 and 2 doses of measles vaccine is 93% and 97% effective, respectively, in preventing measles.” – CIDRAP
