DW.COM – West Texas has been gripped by a measles outbreak for the past several weeks and as a result of misinformation passed on by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., it now faces a second, related health problem:
The situation appears to be the direct result of bogus medical information peddled by the vaccine-skeptic secretary himself.
Kennedy recently said that although the measles vaccine is the best defense against the highly contagious and potentially fatal infection, he emphasized that getting inoculated was a “personal choice.”
Kennedy, whom President Donald Trump appointed to be the nation’s top health advisor, suggested, “vitamin A can dramatically reduce measles mortality,” or even prevent measles infections.
“Although vitamin A may be given to measles patients who suffer malnutrition-related vitamin A deficiencies, there is no evidence suggesting that it is effective in preventing measles.”
Kennedy recently directed the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC) to update measles guidance to promote vitamin A use in fighting the infection.
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In early March, the CDC’s top communications officer, Thomas Corry, cited Kennedy’s slow response to the West Texas outbreak and his embrace of so-called “alternative measles treatment,” as the reason for his resignation.
Numerous other CDC and HHS officials have resigned since Kennedy took over, more health workers still —so far at least 10,000 — have also fallen prey to Elon Musk’s cost-cutting measures …