Years before Kennedy trained his focus on vaccine issues in Samoa, the small Pacific island nation had been experiencing low vaccination rates. Medical professionals attributed this to a shortage of doctors and nurses as well as demographic shifts, with more people moving to cities and away from social structures that helped promote childhood vaccinations. By 2017, only about half of 1-year-old Samoan children were fully vaccinated — far below the 95% coverage needed to prevent community spread and a steep drop from earlier rates that had reportedly reached 90%.
The situation took a tragic turn in July 2018 when two nurses mistakenly combined an expired muscle relaxant with MMR vaccine doses instead of sterile water, leading to the deaths of two children. The nurses were charged with manslaughter, and the government responded by suspending the national vaccination program for 10 months. Vaccination rates for children dropped to 31%.
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In interviews, Samoan health officials told CBS News they believe Kennedy's actions were unlikely to have directly influenced what occurred.
"It is well documented that RFK Jnr's visit to Samoa in 2019 coincided with increased anti-vaccine sentiment, particularly among certain groups," Samoa's Ministry of Health said in a statement. "However, there is no conclusive evidence that his visit directly contributed to the decline in vaccination rates or the subsequent measles outbreak."
Years before Kennedy trained his focus on vaccine issues in Samoa, the small Pacific island nation had been experiencing low vaccination rates. Medical professionals attributed this to a shortage of doctors and nurses as well as demographic shifts, with more people moving to cities and away from social structures that helped promote childhood vaccinations. By 2017, only about half of 1-year-old Samoan children were fully vaccinated — far below the 95% coverage needed to prevent community spread and a steep drop from earlier rates that had reportedly reached 90%.
The situation took a tragic turn in July 2018 when two nurses mistakenly combined an expired muscle relaxant with MMR vaccine doses instead of sterile water, leading to the deaths of two children. The nurses were charged with manslaughter, and the government responded by suspending the national vaccination program for 10 months. Vaccination rates for children dropped to 31%.
[…]
In interviews, Samoan health officials told CBS News they believe Kennedy's actions were unlikely to have directly influenced what occurred.
"It is well documented that RFK Jnr's visit to Samoa in 2019 coincided with increased anti-vaccine sentiment, particularly among certain groups," Samoa's Ministry of Health said in a statement. "However, there is no conclusive evidence that his visit directly contributed to the decline in vaccination rates or the subsequent measles outbreak."