Only 40% of people now consider childhood vaccines “extremely important,” down from 64% in 2001. Among Republicans, that figure has plunged to just 26%, according to Gallup polling.

The collapse reflects a widespread and mounting distrust of public health authorities, and the reason for that distrust is no mystery. During the COVID-19 pandemic, officials from former President Joe Biden and Dr. Anthony Fauci to state health departments and local mayors issued a string of heavy-handed mandates, decrees, and lockdown orders that were inconsistent and, at times, contradictory.