Overview

• In an opinion for Bloomberg News, Michael Bloomberg called on Republican senators to demand the White House constrain or oust the HHS secretary over his vaccine stance
• Bloomberg labeled Kennedy the nation’s leading purveyor of “junk science” and conspiracy theories despite having no medical or public health training
• Since his July confirmation, Kennedy has dismissed all 17 members of the CDC’s vaccine advisory board and reconstituted it with anti-vaccine advocates
• Public health officials report more than 1,300 confirmed measles cases and three deaths since mid-July, prompting warnings that the U.S. may be entering a post-herd immunity era
• Bloomberg cautioned that failure to rein in Kennedy could turn Republicans into the “party of measles” and risk electoral backlash