Democratic senators are calling for an investigation into Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., accusing him of making false statements to Congress about a 2019 trip to Samoa that he repeatedly said had “nothing to do with vaccines.”
Kennedy’s visit to the Pacific island nation became a point of controversy during his confirmation process last year. He traveled to Samoa months before a measles outbreak swept through the country, killing 83 people. At the time, Kennedy was leading a nonprofit organization known for its anti-vaccine activism.
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But letters obtained by the Guardian and the Associated Press earlier this week indicate that vaccines were a focus of Kennedy’s trip, prompting renewed scrutiny from Democrats.
In a letter Kennedy sent to Samoa’s prime minister before his visit, he explicitly said he wanted to study the measles, mumps, and rubella, or MMR, vaccine in the country. The letter used the words “vaccine” or “vaccination” eight times.
“I am writing this letter to you in the hope that we might be helpful to the people of your great nation,” Kennedy wrote, adding that he believed the deaths of two Samoan children following an MMR vaccination could have been caused by manufacturing problems.
“I would propose my team conduct detailed health informatics assessment in Samoa of what happened with your MMR vaccines,” Kennedy wrote.
The records have drawn criticism from Democratic senators who questioned Kennedy about the trip during his confirmation hearings last year.
When Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) asked Kennedy about the trip, Kennedy responded: “I went there, nothing to do with vaccines. I went there to introduce a medical informatics system that would digitalize records in Samoa and make health delivery much more efficient.”
The following day, Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA) also questioned Kennedy about the visit. Kennedy again said: “My purpose in going down there had nothing to do with vaccines.”
Under further questioning, Kennedy again denied that vaccines were the purpose of the trip, saying: “My purpose in the trip was not to — I ended up having conversations with people, some of whom I never intended to meet.”
Kennedy also told senators that he did not influence Samoans’ decisions about whether to vaccinate.
“I never gave any public statement about vaccines,” Kennedy said. “You cannot find a single Samoan who will say ‘I didn’t get a vaccine because of Bobby Kennedy.’”
Wyden said Thursday that he plans to press his Republican colleagues to support a criminal investigation into Kennedy.
“RFK’s platform is built on lies and grifts that leave a trail of dead children in their wake,” Wyden said. “There are consequences for lying to Congress.”
American Oversight, a government watchdog group, also sent a letter Thursday to the Justice Department asking it to investigate immediately whether Kennedy violated federal law by making false statements to Congress.
There are conflicting reports on whether Kennedy was under oath for his confirmation hearings. Generally, candidates for a position take an oath. Nonetheless, knowingly making materially false statements to Congress can be a federal crime, but such cases are rarely prosecuted.
The Department of Health and Human Services did not respond to a request for comment.
Markey also condemned Kennedy following the release of the records, arguing they contradict his testimony during the confirmation process.
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“These records show that RFK Jr.’s testimony that his trip had ‘nothing to do with vaccines’ was false,” Markey said. “This is a pattern, not a slip. RFK Jr. has lied to the Senate, lied to the American people and jeopardized the health of children to advance his anti-vaccine agenda. He should never have been confirmed, and he cannot be trusted to run HHS for even one more day.”
Sen. Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD), a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, which oversees HHS, also renewed her call for Kennedy to resign or be fired.
