Documents show RFK Jr. mentioned vaccines 8 times in Samoa trip letter, contradicting testimony

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. repeatedly told lawmakers during his confirmation process that a 2019 visit to Samoa before a deadly measles outbreak had "nothing to do with vaccines." New documents obtained by The Associated Press and The Guardian now refute that testimony.

Key Findings from the Documents

At the time, Kennedy was a prominent anti-vaccine activist. Before his visit to the Pacific island nation, he sent a letter to the Samoan prime minister requesting to study the country's measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccines following the deaths of two children who had received them. In the letter, Kennedy used the words "vaccine" or "vaccination" eight times.

The letter raises questions about the truthfulness of Kennedy's testimony before Congress. During an arduous confirmation process, where he needed support from skeptical Republican lawmakers, Kennedy also pledged to maintain vaccine policies that he later moved to change once in office.

Excerpt from Kennedy's Letter

"I am writing this letter to you in the hope that we might be helpful to the people of your great nation," Kennedy wrote, adding that he believed the deaths of the two children could have resulted from manufacturing issues.

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"I would propose my team conduct detailed health informatics assessment in Samoa of what happened with your MMR vaccines," he continued.

HHS Response

The Department of Health and Human Services said in response to questions from the AP that the Samoa visit "was unrelated to vaccines."

"Any claim or insinuation based on these letters that Secretary Kennedy lied under oath or to Congress is not only false but outright defamatory," the department said in a written statement.

Note: Kennedy was not under oath during his confirmation hearing. Knowingly giving material false testimony to Congress is a crime that carries a possible prison sentence regardless of whether a person is under oath, though it is rarely prosecuted.

HHS did not make Kennedy available for an interview. The White House did not respond to a request for comment. The Samoan prime minister's office and the former prime minister who corresponded with Kennedy also did not respond to requests for comment.

The Samoa Visit and Its Aftermath

Kennedy's Samoa visit has become one of the most contentious events in his career. At the time, he was leading a nonprofit known for its anti-vaccine activism. Critics said the visit emboldened anti-vaccine activists in Samoa, which later experienced a measles outbreak that killed 83 people, mostly children under 5.

Legal Implications

Lawyers with expertise in Senate procedure said that if lawmakers choose, they could use Kennedy's statements as grounds for hearings, an impeachment inquiry, or creating other obstacles for him. However, such action is unlikely under the current Republican-led Congress, which is aligned with President Donald Trump's administration.

Kennedy's Confirmation Testimony

At the start of Trump's second term, Kennedy — a leader in the anti-vaccine movement before entering politics — faced an uphill battle as he sought to become the nation's health secretary. Lawmakers from both parties had criticized his anti-vaccine rhetoric, and during his confirmation hearings, he tried to assure them that he supported childhood vaccination.

The Samoa trip came under scrutiny. Kennedy told senators that his visit did not influence people's decisions on whether to vaccinate. Several times, he flatly denied that his reason for the trip had anything to do with vaccines.

• When questioned by Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Kennedy replied: "I went there, nothing to do with vaccines. I went there to introduce a medical informatics system that would digitalize records in Samoa and make health delivery much more efficient."
• The following day, when Sen. Edward Markey (D-Mass.) asked, Kennedy said: "My purpose in going down there had nothing to do with vaccines."
• Upon further questioning, Kennedy again denied it had anything to do with vaccines before adding: "My purpose in the trip was not to — I ended up having conversations with people, some of whom I never intended to meet."

Confirmation and Subsequent Actions

In the end, Kennedy won crucial support from Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy, the Louisiana physician who leads the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee and has strongly advocated vaccination. The Senate confirmed Kennedy on a 52-48 vote.

Cassidy said he voted to confirm Kennedy because he received commitments that as health secretary, he would not change certain vaccine policies and guidance. For example, Cassidy said in a speech announcing his vote, Kennedy pledged to maintain a federal vaccine advisory committee "without changes." Once in office, Kennedy ousted all 17 members of the committee and named his own advisers.

Cassidy has acknowledged his trust in Kennedy was broken.

"The commitments that were made to me have been violated," Cassidy said on CBS's "Face the Nation" in June.