Hawaii Governor Josh Green has warned U.S. senators not to confirm Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as the next Secretary of Health and Human Services, citing Kennedy’s role in spreading anti-vaccine misinformation that contributed to a deadly measles outbreak in Samoa.
Green, a physician, emphasized the life-or-death importance of having a public health expert in the position, contrasting Kennedy’s activism with the necessity of expert leadership in health policy.
Green recounted the 2019 measles crisis in Samoa, where a tragic mistake by nurses administering the MMR vaccine led to a loss of confidence in vaccinations. Kennedy’s anti-vaccine campaign, which Green describes as disinformation, worsened the situation.
As a result, vaccine coverage dropped to 31%, and the outbreak spread rapidly, leading to more than 80 deaths, many of them children. Green and other health professionals intervened, vaccinating 37,000 people, which helped stem the crisis but did not prevent all the harm, including thousands likely suffering from encephalopathy, a condition linked to measles.
Green’s message, shared during a press conference in Washington, is that Kennedy’s actions in Samoa had devastating consequences, and his stance on vaccines disqualifies him from overseeing the nation’s health agency.
He also encouraged President-elect Donald Trump to reconsider Kennedy’s nomination, suggesting he could be suited for other roles but not this critical public health position. Green is actively meeting with senators, including Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), a physician, to rally opposition to the nomination.
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