RFK Jr. Attends Measles Victim’s Funeral, Then Pitches Junk Treatment

The measles outbreak successful Texas has gotten deadlier, conscionable arsenic U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., visited the authorities implicit the weekend. Health officials person reported a 2nd section decease from the resurgent virus, present marking the 3rd wide U.S. decease connected to measles this year.

The Texas Department of Health and Human Services reported the 2nd decease precocious Saturday night, though it really occurred Thursday. The idiosyncratic (since identified arsenic eight-year-old Daisy Hildebrand) died from “measles pulmonary failure,” according to doctors astatine University Medical Center Children’s Hospital successful Lubbock, Texas. On Sunday, RFK Jr. attended Hildebrand’s funeral, and helium has continued to some tout the benefits of vaccination arsenic good arsenic unsupported aesculapian treatments for measles.

As of aboriginal April, 481 measles cases person been documented successful Texas, dating backmost to mid-January, portion 56 radical person been hospitalized. Much similar the archetypal fatal lawsuit reported successful Texas past month, Hildebrand was unvaccinated and had nary pre-existing wellness conditions. New Mexico officials reported the decease of an big with measles past period arsenic well, though it’s not yet confirmed whether the viral illness was to blame. These are the archetypal documented measles deaths successful the U.S. since 2015.

Overall, much than 600 cases of measles person been reported successful the U.S. Outbreaks successful Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and perchance Kansas are connected to each other, and person mostly occurred among unvaccinated Mennonite communities successful agrarian regions. There person besides been isolated, travel-related cases successful implicit a twelve different states. This lawsuit toll successful 2025 has already surpassed past year’s, and determination is simply a accidental it volition apical 2019, the erstwhile high-water people seen since the microorganism was locally eliminated successful the U.S. successful 2020. There were 1,274 cases successful 2019, arsenic the U.S. teetered connected the brink of losing its measles-free status.

During his sojourn to Texas, RFK Jr.—a regularly debunked vaccine skeptic—offered his strongest endorsement of vaccination yet. He stated successful a societal media station Sunday that “the astir effectual mode to forestall the dispersed of measles is the MMR [the operation measles, mumps, and rubella] vaccine.” At the aforesaid time, helium continued to beforehand medically unsound treatments for the viral disease. In a abstracted post, helium stated that helium met with 2 doctors, Richard Bartlett and Ben Edwards, and claimed that they had “treated and healed” immoderate 300 Mennonite children utilizing a operation of aerosolized budesonide (a steroid) and clarithromycin (an antibiotic).

Doctors person occasionally turned to steroids for superior and applicable measles complications, specified arsenic brain swelling, but determination isn’t strong-enough grounds supporting its modular use. A 2023 study, for instance, failed to find that steroids were associated with amended outcomes during a 2017 measles outbreak successful Italy (thankfully, they weren’t associated with worse outcomes). Antibiotics tin beryllium utilized to dainty secondary bacterial infections that could look from measles, but they can’t straight dainty viral infections. These medications aren’t risk-free either: steroids are known to weaken people’s immune systems, for instance.

Previously, RFK Jr. has claimed that cod liver oil—rich successful vitamin A—can beryllium an effectual measles attraction arsenic well. But there’s nary rationale for its usage successful the U.S., since precise fewer Americans endure from vitamin A deficiency. And immoderate children fixed vitamin A for their measles person already developed vitamin A toxicity arsenic a result, according to doctors successful the region.

While Kennedy whitethorn yet person recovered a vaccine that helium tin support, his different aesculapian proposal has and could precise good endanger much children suffering from measles.