New Letters Contradict RFK Jr.'s Claims That Samoa Trip Was Unrelated to Vaccines

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. told lawmakers during his confirmation that a 2019 trip to Samoa had "nothing to do with vaccines." Newly obtained documents, however, indicate he wrote to the Samoan prime minister beforehand, explicitly requesting to study the nation's measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine program.

The letter, dated January 20, 2019, was sent on letterhead from Children's Health Defense, the anti-vaccine nonprofit Kennedy then led. In it, he proposed a "detailed health informatics assessment" of the country's MMR vaccines, following the deaths of two children who had received them. The word "vaccine" or "vaccination" appears eight times in the correspondence.

During his Senate confirmation hearings, Kennedy repeatedly denied that vaccines were the purpose of the trip. When questioned by Senator Ron Wyden, he said he went to introduce a medical informatics system. He gave a similar answer to Senator Edward Markey the next day, insisting his purpose "had nothing to do with vaccines."

The Department of Health and Human Services has defended Kennedy, calling any suggestion that he lied "outright defamatory." The department noted that Kennedy was not under oath during his confirmation hearing, though knowingly providing false testimony to Congress is technically a crime regardless.

The Samoa visit has long been a flashpoint in Kennedy's career. At the time, vaccination rates in Samoa had plummeted after the government suspended immunizations for ten months following the children's deaths. A measles outbreak later killed 83 people, mostly young children. Public health experts have said anti-vaccine activists, emboldened by Kennedy's presence, hampered their response.

Kennedy's confirmation ultimately succeeded with support from Republican Senator Bill Cassidy, who later said his trust was broken after Kennedy dismantled a federal vaccine advisory committee he had pledged to keep intact.