During an event in New York City back in October, former President Donald Trump made a vow to his audience. If he ascended to the presidency once again, he assured them, he would provide Robert F. Kennedy Jr. the freedom to overhaul health, food, and medicine policies in the country. The crowd response was jubilant, as visions of improved healthcare and superior medication filled their minds. Little did they know of the taste of disillusionment that lay ahead for them.
This choice of Kennedy has even received qualified support from some quarters who should be better informed. The current American healthcare system is indeed overly dependent on drug solutions for even the most minor discomforts, ignoring broader issues such as environment, culture, and individual behavior. If Kennedy’s appointment is finalized, however, it won’t be his occasional rational insights that dominate. Instead, the vast majority of his views, which are tilted toward the irrational, will influence policy and decision-making.
It’s not merely that Kennedy is often ill-informed, unfortunate as that may be. The deeper issue is that he is a disseminator of inaccurate information. That reflects negatively on his character and judgment. Assigning health policy oversight to him for an entire nation is tantamount to recruiting a pyromaniac as the head of a fire station.
Consider the case of measles, one of the most infectious diseases known to mankind. Historically, it took the lives of around 500 U.S. citizens annually. Samoa witnessed a surge in measles cases in 2019 that came about due to both an error and a blatant falsehood.
The error took place in 2018 when two nurses improperly combined components of a measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine, tragically leading to the deaths of two infants. They were later found guilty of involuntary manslaughter. The lie followed soon after, with RFK Jr. exacerbating the situation by spreading the unproven theory that MMR vaccines cause autism, peanut allergies, and other health issues.
The destructive impact of this misinformation became apparent when Samoan parents, fearful of the vaccination due to the widely spread film, began to refuse to have their children inoculated. After the tragic deaths of the two babies, RFK Jr. traveled to the island during the escalating epidemic in 2019. He met with local anti-vaccine proponents spreading groundless speculation that the MMR vaccine contained a mutant strain that had triggered the epidemic.
The consequences turned out to be disastrous. More than 3% of Samoa’s total population was infected by the disease. Among infants aged 6 to 11 months, this figure rose alarmingly to around 20%. Ultimately, over 150 individuals, most of them infants, lost their lives.
Kennedy’s advocacy against vaccines is a notorious mainstay of his career, yet his propensity for unusual theories does not end there. He has committed to terminating the FDA’s supposed ?war? on raw milk. Consuming raw, unprocessed milk and cheese has unfortunately been linked to multiple recent outbreaks of foodborne diseases like E. coli, salmonella, among others.
Kennedy has also alleged that Wi-Fi leads to cancer and a condition he refers to as ‘leaky brain’. He has further suggested that the use of antidepressants might be tied to incidents of school shootings. Unfortunately, he appears to have an inclination towards suspecting malevolent forces at work behind many phenomena.
In his role as the secretary of Health and Human Services, RFK Jr. would exercise supervisory control over significant agencies such as the FDA, CDC, NIH, the Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, and the Indian Health Service, to name a few.
Without a doubt, Kennedy has the personal freedom to fry his potatoes in beef tallow or drink raw milk as he pleases. However, under no circumstances should his health guidance be followed by a rational individual. Moreover, it would be ill-advised for any senator to agree to grant him authority over government entities that supervise our food and medicines.
Kennedy envisions himself as a crusading knight. Regrettably, his proposed ‘remedies’ would entail dialing back some of the most remarkable scientific advancements in human history. These include momentous achievements like pasteurization, vaccinations, and our scientific approach to discerning truth.
If such a step is indeed taken, it would ironically mean endorsing a figure known for spreading misinformation to supervise one of the most critical aspects of our lives – our health. Giving undue credence to unproven theories, while overlooking proven scientific methods and results, could potentially lead to grievous consequences.
In conclusion, the possible election of Donald Trump isn’t solely a political matter. It also carries significant implications for the state of health, food, and medicine policies in the country. As citizens, we must be fully aware of the potential impacts of these decisions on our lives and act accordingly.