I’m a physician who has looked at hundreds of studies of vaccine safety, and here’s some of what RFK Jr. gets wrong

  In the four months since he began serving as secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has made many public statements about vaccines that have cast doubt on their safety and on the objectivity of long-standing processes established to evaluate them.

  Many of these statements are factually incorrect. For example, in a newscast aired on June 12, 2025, Kennedy told Fox News viewers that 97% of federal vaccine advisers are on the take. In the same interview, he also claimed that children receive 92 mandatory shots. He has also widely claimed that only COVID-19 vaccines, not other vaccines in use by both children and adults, were ever tested against placebos and that “nobody has any idea” how safe routine immunizations are.

Measles could again become widespread as cases surge worldwide

  Globally, measles is on the rise across the U.S., Canada, Mexico, South America, and parts of Europe. In 2025, North and South America saw 11 times more cases than during the same period last year. In Europe, measles rates are at their highest point in 25 years.

  In the United States., as of May 2, 2025, health authorities have confirmed 935 cases of measles affecting 30 states. This is a huge surge compared with the 285 cases reported in 2024. A large measles outbreak is happening in Canada, too, with over 1,000 cases.

  The Conversation asked Rebecca Schein, a specialist in pediatric infectious diseases, to explain what this spike at home and abroad might mean for a disease that was declared eliminated from the U.S. in 2000.

The danger of mixing law and religion, in two Alabama bills

  We reap bitter fruit when lawmakers cross-pollinate religion and law.

  It’s not just a question of elevating one belief over others. The law at its best gives fair treatment to competing interests and keeps them on the same path through the world. When one version of what lies beyond this reality gets into the law, the people clinging to that vision enjoy a privilege over any other need or desire in the broader community.

  Two bills pending before the Alabama Legislature put particular beliefs on a pedestal. And in the process, they could subject public education and the health of our children to the schemes of zealots.

Vaccines tell a success story that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Trump forget – here are some key reminders

  Vaccinations have provided significant protection for the public against infectious diseases. However, there was a modest decrease in support in 2023 nationwide for vaccine requirements for children to attend public schools.

  In addition, the presidential candidacy of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a leading critic of childhood vaccination, has given him a prominent platform in which to amplify his views. This includes an extensive interview on the “Joe Rogan Experience,” a podcast with over 14 million subscribers. Notably, former President Donald Trump has said he is opposed to mandatory school COVID-19 vaccinations, and in a phone call Trump apparently wasn’t aware was being recorded, he appeared to endorse Kennedy’s views toward vaccines.

Boost your immune system with this centuries-old health hack: Vaccines

  There are a dizzying number of tips, hacks, and recommendations on how to stay healthy, from dietary supplements to what color of clothes promotes optimal wellness. Some of these tips are helpful and based on good evidence, while others are not.

  However, one of the easiest, most effective, and safest ways to stay healthy is rarely mentioned: vaccination.

Why are our leaders arguing for measles outbreaks?

  Measles can do a lot more than give a child a rash.

  It can start a 104 degree fever and cause eye-swelling. About 10% of kids who get measles get ear infections.

  About 20% of people who contract measles go to the hospital. Five percent develop pneumonia. (If a child dies from measles, it’s often for that reason.) In rare cases, a child can develop encephalitis, a swelling of the brain that can lead to deafness or intellectual disabilities.

  And it can spread with frightening speed, infecting 9 of 10 people.

Low vaccine booster rates are now a key factor in COVID-19 deaths – and racial disparities in booster rates persist

  More than 450 people are dying of COVID-19 in the U.S. each day as of late August 2022.

  When COVID-19 vaccines first became available, public officials, community organizations, and policymakers mobilized to get shots into arms. These efforts included significant investments in making vaccines accessible to Black, Hispanic, American Indian, and Alaska Native populations. These groups experienced exceptionally high COVID-19 death rates early in the pandemic and had low initial vaccine rates.

Vaccine hesitancy is complicating physicians’ obligation to respect patient autonomy during the COVID-19 pandemic

  Sitting barely six feet away from me, my patient yelled angrily, his face mask slipping to his upper lip: “No, I will not get vaccinated. And nothing you do or say will change that fact.” He provided no reason for why he was so opposed to the COVID-19 vaccine.

  As a primary care resident physician working in an underserved area of Reading, Pennsylvania, I have seen patients of all age groups refusing to follow COVID-19 guidelines such as wearing a mask, social distancing, or getting the vaccine.

The American founders didn’t believe your sacred freedom means you can do whatever you want – not even when it comes to vaccines and your own body

  President Joe Biden has mandated vaccines for a large part of the American workforce, a requirement that has prompted protest from those opposed to the measure.

  Meanwhile, a similar move in New York City to enforce vaccinations has resulted in more than a dozen businesses being fined for flouting the rules.

Can healthy people who eat right and exercise skip the COVID-19 vaccine? A research scientist and fitness enthusiast explains why the answer is no

  I’m a fitness enthusiast. I also adhere to a nutrient-dense, “clean” eating program, which means I minimize my sugar intake and eat a lot of whole foods for the purpose of optimizing my health.

  You might wonder how effective such a diet and exercise plan would be in the fight against COVID-19, since some have suggested – without supporting evidence – that vaccination may be unnecessary if a detailed wellness lifestyle is closely followed.

Why refusing the COVID-19 vaccine isn’t just immoral – it’s ‘un-American’

  Decades ago, I helped organize a conference that brought together vaccine skeptics and public health officials. The debate centered on what governments can and cannot demand from citizens, and what behaviors one can rightly expect from others.

  It took place many years before the current coronavirus pandemic, but many things that happened at that conference remind me of our circumstances today. Not least, as a political theorist who also studies social ethics, it reminds me that arguments grounded in self-interest can often be correct – but still deeply inadequate.

1 in 4 unvaccinated people may not comply with CDC guidelines to wear masks indoors, survey suggests

  The revised guidelines on when and when not to wear masks came as a surprise to many Americans. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced May 13, 2021 that people who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 can safely enter many indoor settings, such as grocery stores and restaurants, without wearing a mask.

  The CDC’s updated guidelines also ask that unvaccinated or partially vaccinated people continue to wear a mask – even in establishments like bars and restaurants, where doing so may no longer be required.

Vaccinated and ready to party? Not so fast, says the CDC, but you can gather with other vaccinated people

  If you’ve been vaccinated for COVID-19, is it safe to gather with friends and loved ones in person? According to guidelines issued March 8 by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, yes, fully vaccinated people can gather in small groups with other fully vaccinated people. And you can do that without the encumbrance of a mask or social distancing.

  More than 30 million people in the U.S. are now fully vaccinated against coronavirus, meaning that a fraction of the population is immune to COVID-19. This is because vaccination with the Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson vaccines offers very high levels of protection against the coronavirus. However, there is still a small risk that vaccinated people could transmit the disease to others.

Humans are hardwired to dismiss facts that don’t fit their worldview

  Something is rotten in the state of American political life. The U.S. (among other nations) is increasingly characterized by highly polarized, informationally insulated ideological communities occupying their own factual universes.

  Within the conservative political blogosphere, global warming is either a hoax or so uncertain as to be unworthy of response. Within other geographic or online communities, vaccines, fluoridated water, and genetically modified foods are known to be dangerous. Right-wing media outlets paint a detailed picture of how Donald Trump is the victim of a fabricated conspiracy.

Charles C. Haynes: Vaccines, science and the limits of freedom

  Alarm over the current measles outbreak that began mid-December in Disneyland, California – more than 100 cases in 14 states reported in January – has renewed debate about laws in all 50 states and the District of Columbia mandating that students be vaccinated for certain diseases before entering school.

  At issue are the religious and personal belief exemptions granted to parents who choose not to vaccinate their children.