The U.S. is experiencing its worst measles outbreak in 35 years, with more than 2,300 confirmed cases reported so far. As health officials warn that declining vaccination rates are fueling the virus's spread, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. continues to face criticism from public health experts over his vaccine skepticism and comments about immunization.
Those tensions were front and center when GOP Sen. Bill Cassidy joined Katie Couric on the latest episode of Next Question for a wide-ranging — and at times contentious — conversation about vaccines, public health, and his role in confirming Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as the nation's top health official. Afterward, Katie described it as "one of the most frustrating interviews" she'd done in years, saying she was especially struck by Cassidy's reluctance to more forcefully challenge the administration despite being a physician and a longtime advocate for vaccination.
Cassidy, for his part, repeatedly defended the safety and effectiveness of vaccines during the conversation, arguing that the country's worsening measles outbreak reflects declining confidence in immunization.
“When you see immunization rates falling nationwide, there's some connection [between that and the rise in measles cases],” he tells Katie. “Obviously, we wish vaccine skeptics weren't promoting it. But there'll be consequences for having done so, and in some cases, those consequences will be tragic.”
Cassidy addressed some of Kennedy's other controversial claims, including the suggestion that Tylenol use during pregnancy could be linked to autism. He called the idea "wrong," warning that it would "misdirect parents" and divert attention from research into autism's actual causes.
He also took issue with language on the CDC's autism webpage suggesting vaccines have not been definitively ruled out as a cause, arguing that public health officials should instead be promoting "correct information" so parents can make informed decisions.
“We should be promoting correct information for the benefit of the American people,” he says.
But Cassidy was more reluctant when it came to defending his own role in confirming Kennedy. When asked whether the health secretary is qualified to lead HHS, he initially sidestepped the question before ultimately saying, "If I was the president of the United States, he would not be my secretary of HHS."
Still, when Katie pressed him on whether, knowing what he knows today, he would cast the same deciding vote to confirm Kennedy, Cassidy stopped short of saying he would have decided differently, responding instead: "Life is lived forward, not backward."
The conversation later turned to Dr. Anthony Fauci, who became the public face of the federal government's Covid-19 response. The former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases has continued to face criticism from some conservatives, who blame him for lockdowns and other pandemic-era policies. Cassidy pushed back on those arguments, saying responsibility ultimately rested with the elected officials who enacted those policies.
"The buck doesn't stop with the guy giving advice," he tells Katie. "The buck stops with the guy or the gal who's actually making a decision."
For more on Cassidy's views on vaccines, RFK Jr., the CDC and the future of public health, watch Katie's full interview.
