Few Americans would describe the Trump administration as pro-vaccination. Against the advice of all medical experts and authorities, Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. has pruned the childhood vaccine schedule, and is even being sued by the American Academy of Pediatrics for what they call arbitrary changes to national vaccine guidelines.
As a result of this administrations’ attacks on vaccines, childhood vaccination rates have declined nationwide, leading to record-breaking measles outbreaks in 2025 — and the pace is only picking up. So it caught many viewers by surprise when CMS Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz said this: “Take the vaccine, please.”
During an interview with CNN’s Dana Bash about the launch of TrumpRx, Bash took the opportunity to ask Oz about the latest measles outbreak in the U.S.
“South Carolina is currently reporting 800 cases — it’s the worst outbreak since measles was declared eradicated more than three decades ago. Is this a consequence of the administration undermining support or advocacy for measles and other vaccines?” she asked.
“I don’t believe so,” Oz responded. “We’ve advocated for measles vaccines all along. Secretary Kennedy has been at the very front of this —”
“Oh come on,” Bash cut in.
“No, he is. When the first outbreak happened in Texas, he said get your vaccines for measles because that’s an example of an ailment that you should get vaccinated against.”
Bash then referenced a February 5 X post from the Children’s Health Defense — the anti-vax organization RFK Jr. founded — that reads “despite the media’s fear tactics, there’s no reason to fear measles.”
“As a doctor, your message to people about the measles vaccine is…” Bash prompted.
“Take the vaccine, please,” Oz said. “We have a solution for our problem. Not all illnesses are equally dangerous and not all people are equally susceptible to illnesses. But measles is one you should get your vaccine [for].”
Oz’s stance is much clearer than that of his boss. RFK Jr. has previously stated the measles vaccine is “crucial to avoiding potentially deadly disease,” while also sowing doubt about the vaccine’s safety and making changes to the childhood vaccine schedule that experts say will reduce vaccination rates for measles overall.
He has even (falsely) claimed that the measles vaccines causes numerous child deaths each year. As The New York Times laid out, following a measles outbreak in Texas last year, Kennedy also:
- Told the public to get their measles vaccine while also questioning their safety, saying they are not safety tested. This is not true. In fact, vaccines are arguably the most intensely studied medical intervention in the world, both in terms of safety and effectiveness.
- Touted vitamin A as a “miraculous” treatment for measles, leading to multiple children being hospitalized for vitamin A toxicity.
- Continued to push the idea that vaccines cause autism, despite numerous large-scale studies that have determined they do not. This has contributed to the CDC and HHS now positioning getting vaccinated as a personal choice rather than one that has wide-reaching affects on population health.
According to a poll from the Annenberg Public Policy Center (APPC) at the University of Pennsylvania, support for the MMR vaccine among U.S. adults dropped from 90% to 82% last year, and Kennedy had a clear role in participants’ feelings. Less than a quarter of them (23%) believed he recommends the MMR vaccine for kids, while 29% said he doesn’t recommend it, and 48% “weren’t sure.”
As America’s measles cases surge, Kennedy’s possible role in a measles outbreak in Samoa has been called into question. Just last week, new documents were uncovered that show Kennedy visited Samoa in 2019 to meet with fellow anti-vaccine advocates and Samoan officials, where he “suggested without evidence that the measles infections were due to a defective vaccine,” PBS News reports. Following a measles outbreak that infected thousands and killed 83 — mostly children 5 years or younger — Samoan officials said Kennedy’s visit had “bolstered the credibility” of anti-vaxxers.
So yes, Dr. Oz’s clear and emphatic plea for Americans to get the MMR vaccine feels like a departure from this administration’s previous guidance. For what it’s worth, both the AAP and the CDC say one dose of the MMR vaccine is 93% effective at preventing measles and two doses are 97% effective, while the government website states in large text, “The vaccine is safe and effective.”
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