When Lyndon B. Johnson was President in the late 1960s, opponents of the war in Vietnam used to taunt him with this phrase when he appeared at public events: “Hey, hey, LBJ! How many kids did you kill today?”
These days, the same phrase could be used to describe Robert F. Kennedy Jr, Secretary of Health and Human Services, who has been a “vaccine skeptic” for many years. Now that RFK is the nation’s top public health official, he has pushed to make vaccines voluntary, not mandatory, and sided with parents who seek exemptions for religious or personal reasons.
In the year 2000, the U.S. had officially eliminated measles, due to near universal vaccination of children. Worldwide, the U.S. was considered the gold standard in public health.
With the number of unvaccinated children rising, so is the number of measles cases. See uuuh
The CDC (US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) would normally be leading a national campaign to persuade parents to vaccinate their children and to warn states and communities to strengthen their vaccine mandates for the sake of their children.
But under RFK, every part of the public health agency has experienced large numbers of layoffs and deep budget cuts (in response to Elon Musk’s deeply irresponsible DOGE operation).
RFK has overseen rapid turnover in leadership as well as the imposition of his negative view of vaccines. He has said that vaccines create more problems than they solve. Some parents would hesitate before subjecting their young children to vaccines, if they listened to the nation’s leading public health official.
The CDC has reported 5,182 measles infections, matching a high not seen since 1991, twenty-five years. Eight people have died in the recent outbreak. The U.S. may lose its international reputation as a nation that has eradicated measles.
These are the data from the CDC website:
Key CDC Measles and Vaccine Data (2026)
- Case Counts & Outbreaks:
- 5,182 confirmed cases span 47 U.S. jurisdictions (plus 18 cases among international visitors).
- 43 new outbreaks have been recorded in 2026, with 96% of cases (4,993 out of 5,182) linked to outbreaks.
- By comparison, there were 2,289 confirmed cases in all of 2025 and 285 in 2024. [1]
- Vaccination Status of Cases:
- 96% of reported cases are among individuals who are unvaccinated or have an unknown vaccination status.
- 2% received one dose of the MMR Vaccine, and 2% received the recommended two doses. [1]
- Vaccine Effectiveness & Recommendations:
- One dose of the MMR vaccine is 93% effective against measles; two doses are 97% effective.
- The CDC recommends two doses: the first at 12 to 15 months of age and the second at 4 to 6 years old. [1]
- Kindergarten Coverage:
- During the 2025–26 school year, 92.4% of U.S. kindergartners received the MMR vaccine, down from 95.2% during the 2019–20 school year. [1]
Even its own website demonstrates the importance of vaccinations, for measles and other diseases. Exemptions should be few, very few. Yet the suspiciousness of vaccines and of government advice that was cultivated during COVID is feeding the fears of parents. That must stop. An administration that discourages vaccines cannot claim to be Making America Healthy Again.
1. Map of measles cases: https://share.google/pZQCqJs4MyazkBmw8