As United States Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. urges Americans to get the measles vaccine, he’s also casting doubt on it — claiming its protection fades “very quickly.”
But experts say that’s simply not true, pointing out that the vaccine can provide protection for decades, if not a lifetime.
During a Wednesday interview with CBS News, Kennedy was asked about the growing measles outbreak in the U.S., particularly in Texas, where a second child has died from the disease.
The U.S. has had more than 607 measles cases in 22 states this year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The agency estimated that about one in five unvaccinated people in the U.S. who get measles will need hospitalization.
As the measles outbreak continues, Kennedy said he encourages people to get vaccinated but does not believe it should be required by the government. He also questioned how effective the vaccine is.
“We’re always going to have measles, no matter what happens, as the vaccine wanes very quickly,” Kennedy said.
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While he acknowledged that the vaccine helps limit the spread of measles, Kennedy said some people don’t want to get it — and that it should be their choice.
“And we want to be able to treat them. We ought to know how to treat them and doctors should have the best information on how to treat them,” he said.
There are no approved treatments for measles.
Dr. Tyler Evans, an infectious disease specialist in Illinois, called Kennedy’s statements “pseudoscience” and “devastating” to public health.
“It absolutely does not wane quickly. It’s one of the most effective vaccines out there,” he told Global News. “Measles is pretty much one of the most infectious diseases out there, and vaccines are the best protection.“
The CDC says the vaccines usually protect people for life against measles.
The measles vaccine is available in Canada as measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) or measles-mumps-rubella-varicella (MMRV) vaccine. It’s estimated to be 85 to 95 per cent effective after a single dose given at 12 or 15 months of age. With a second dose, efficacy rises to nearly 100 per cent, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada.
“Two doses provide lifelong immunity in most people,” says the Public Health Agency of Canada on their website.
“I’ve worked on child measles, vaccination and mass immunization events in the global south for years. The amount of mortality and death that we’re able to save as a result of these mass vaccination advances is pretty compelling,” Evans said.
“We find that the outbreaks take place within certain sorts of niche populations where there might be some sort of misunderstanding on the importance of vaccinations,” he added.
But although there may be vaccine hesitancy, he stressed the safety and durability of this vaccine.
He added that Kennedy’s comment just adds to vaccine hesitancy.
“We were so close to measles actually being eradicated — not just eliminated, but actually eradicated,” he said. “The United States is supposed to be the leader of human rights and health, and making these false statements, it’s devastating. It puts us back decades.”
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