Dr. Paul Offit knows a thing or two about public health and vaccines—and what he’s been seeing lately deeply troubles him. As director of the Vaccine Education Center at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and member of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) vaccine advisory committee, Offit has long been a vocal proponent of robust vaccine programs. Having Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a vocal vaccine skeptic, in the top health job in the federal government “couldn’t be worse,” Offit says. Already, measles is spreading dangerously among pockets of unvaccinated children—even killing some of them, an unheard-of situation in recent history—while the government’s message to get vaccinated is muted, at best. The FDA also canceled its meeting to plan for next year’s flu shot.
“I feel like we have been invaded by a foreign country whose principal objective is to destroy the entire infrastructure of public health,” Offit says. In this new era, he is talking to anyone who will listen—patients, the media, policymakers—about the importance of vaccines. “Through my Substack posts and interviews, I have tried to emphasize the continued threat of RFK Jr. to the health and well-being of America's children,” he says.