Exclusive: RFK Jr. said a Samoa trip had nothing to do with vaccines. New documents refute that

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. insisted to lawmakers during his Senate Finance Committee confirmation hearing last year that a 2019 trip to Samoa prior to a devastating measles outbreak had "nothing to do with vaccines." However, newly released documents from The Associated Press and The Guardian contradict that statement.

Kennedy, a known anti-vaccine advocate at the time, had already approached the Samoan Prime Minister with a letter requesting to investigate the Pacific island nation's measles, mumps, and rubella vaccines following the deaths of two children who had received them. In his correspondence, Kennedy mentioned the words "vaccine" or "vaccination" eight times, suggesting potential deceit during his congressional testimony.

During the confirmation process, Kennedy also assured lawmakers that he would uphold current vaccine policies, only to later alter them while in office. The Department of Health and Human Services responded to inquiries from the AP, stating that the Samoa visit "was unrelated to vaccines" and dismissed any claims of Kennedy lying under oath or to Congress as "false and outright defamatory."

It is important to note that Kennedy was not under oath during his confirmation hearing, but knowingly providing false information to Congress is a crime that can result in imprisonment, even though such prosecutions are uncommon.