Yesterday, former New York City mayor and public health leader Michael Bloomberg spoke at the Bloomberg American Health Summit, urging Senate Republicans to reject the nomination of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. In response, Protect Our Care Chair Leslie Dach issued the following statement:
“RFK Jr. is not a public health official fit for office but, instead, an anti-vaccine conspiracy theorist who embraces fringe ideas and won’t follow the science or trust the experts. His proposals threaten to raise costs and jeopardize jobs across the nation. The American people deserve a leader at HHS who believes in science, who believes in vaccines, and who is committed to lowering costs and protecting health care for families. Michael Bloomberg is right – if RFK Jr. is confirmed, health care for millions is at risk.”
CNBC: Mike Bloomberg Warns Making RFK Jr. HHS Secretary Risks Killing Americans, Urges Senate To Reject Him.
- “Bloomberg in Tuesday’s speech appealed directly to U.S. senators not to confirm RFK Jr. to the Cabinet role in the next Trump administration. ‘We can’t allow Kennedy or Trump or anyone else to bring unimaginable suffering to the American people,’ he said.”
- “And if the government starts to invest in ‘nutty conspiracy theories,’ then funding for researching cures for other diseases could be set back by years, Bloomberg argued. ‘It boggles the mind that the Senate would even consider giving Kennedy any power whatsoever over American health policy,’ he said.”
HuffPost: Michael Bloomberg Said Putting RFK Jr. In Charge of Vaccines Would Be ‘Medical Malpractice.’
- “Speaking Tuesday at the Bloomberg American Health Summit in Washington D.C., Bloomberg, the former mayor of New York City, said putting Kennedy in charge of the nation’s public health agencies would be ‘beyond dangerous’ and ‘medical malpractice on a mass scale.’”
- “Bloomberg said it is ‘beyond comprehension’ that Kennedy would be nominated with such a history, and said he ‘doesn’t care about evidence.’”
The New York Times: Bloomberg Says Kennedy Would Be ‘Beyond Dangerous’ as Health Secretary.
- “Mr. Bloomberg also assailed Mr. Kennedy for discouraging measles vaccination during an outbreak in the island nation of Samoa, where 83 people died. ‘Parents who have been swayed by vaccine skepticism love their children and want to protect them, and we need leaders who will help them do that,’ he said, ‘not conspiracy theorists who will scare them into decisions that will put their children at risk of disease.’”
- “With experts warning of a possible bird flu outbreak in humans, Mr. Bloomberg said senators would face some hard questions: ‘With the nation facing a possible bird flu outbreak, are they really prepared to roll the dice on the lives of their constituents, by placing someone in charge of public health who has made it clear that he will prevent the approval of lifesaving vaccines?’”
The Hill: Bloomberg: RFK Jr. Would Be ‘Beyond Dangerous’ As HHS Head.
- “Speaking during the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg American Health Summit in Washington, Bloomberg said he wanted Senate Republicans to convince President-elect Trump to ‘rethink’ Kennedy’s nomination. ‘If the president-elect doesn’t reconsider the nomination, the Senate has a duty to our whole country, but especially to our children, to vote no,’ Bloomberg said.”
- “Kennedy has a long history of vaccine skepticism, including spreading the false and discredited claim that the measles, mumps and rubella shot can cause autism. If he’s confirmed as Health and Human Services secretary, Kennedy would oversee the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Institutes of Health, and the Food and Drug Administration, the agencies in charge of reviewing and approving new vaccines and recommending which shots people should get.”