WASHINGTON — A polio survivor and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., responded harshly on Friday to a New York Times revelation that a prominent attorney and longtime advisor to Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had asked the FDA to withdraw clearance of the polio vaccine.
Kennedy has long been an opponent of childhood immunizations and has unjustly linked the growth in young autism to the widespread use of vaccines. Kennedy is President-elect Donald Trump’s choice to head the Department of Health and Human Services.
McConnell, who still experiences the disease’s affects as a child, stated that any attempt to prevent the vaccine’s availability would be a catastrophic error because it has saved lives.
According to McConnell’s comments to NBC News, the polio vaccine has prevented millions of deaths and offered hope for the eradication of a horrible illness. In addition to being ignorant, attempts to erode public trust in tried-and-true treatments are harmful.
The Times claims that Kennedy presently has Aaron Siri as an adviser who is tasked with finding applicants for government health jobs. In 2022, Siri submitted the petition on behalf of the Informed Consent Action Network. Kennedy is intimately associated with the anti-vaccine group.
The New York Times was informed by a Kennedy spokesperson that Siri is giving Kennedy advice, but that the two men had not spoken about his request to have the polio vaccine’s clearance revoked.
In a statement to NBC News, RFK Jr. publicist Katie Miller responded to the New York Times piece by saying, “The Polio Vaccine should be available to the public and thoroughly and properly studied.”
He said that the article “begins (and ends) with defending a certain polio vaccine, IPOL, which is not the polio vaccine of old, while playing on fear to distract from the clear safety gaps in licensing this particular product.” Siri directed NBC News to his X account for two statements in response to the story.
In a lengthy X post, Siri wrote, in part, “The NYT reporters writing the hit piece plainly do not care about truth and accuracy,” citing other government records to support his claims.
McConnell made it apparent in his remarks that he will fight to ensure that the polio vaccination is accessible.
I have never shied away from taking on false information that jeopardizes the development of life-saving medical advancements, and I won’t now.
In an interview with NBC News prior to being named Trump’s choice at HHS, Kennedy stated that he would not try to deny anyone their immunizations, despite his vocal opposition to them.
However, he added that he intended to thoroughly examine how the life-saving medications are introduced to the market.
I will not take away vaccines if they are effective for someone. According to him, people should have a choice, and that choice should be based on the best available facts. Therefore, I will ensure that scientific safety and efficacy studies are available so that people may determine for themselves whether a product will be beneficial to them.
Although McConnell doesn’t specifically identify Kennedy in his remarks, he does note that anyone requesting Senate confirmation must be clear about their goals regarding the polio vaccine.
McConnell noted that anyone hoping to gain the Senate’s approval to serve in the new Administration would be wise to avoid even the appearance of being associated with such initiatives.
Kennedy is scheduled to meet with senators on Capitol Hill the following week.
Although McConnell is still a powerful figure in the Senate, he will step down as the Senate’s top Republican in January. A nominee might find it challenging to overcome his objections.
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