{
  "id": 3744429,
  "title": "RFK Jr. said a Samoa trip had nothing to do with vaccines. New documents refute that",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/27/rfk-jr-said-a-samoa-trip-had-nothing-to-do-with-vaccines-new",
  "topic": "health",
  "section": "Health & Medicine",
  "published": "2026-08-27T13:16:38.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "STAT News",
    "slug": "stat-news",
    "url": "https://www.statnews.com/2026/08/27/kennedy-samoa-trip-mmr-vaccine-new-documents/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": null,
  "summary": "Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the Health Secretary, claimed a 2019 visit to Samoa before a deadly measles outbreak had \"nothing to do with vaccines.\" However, new documents obtained by The Associated Press and The Guardian contradict this statement. According to STAT News, Fortune, and Associated Press, Kennedy wrote a letter to the Samoan prime minister before the visit, requesting to study the Pacific island nation's measles, mumps, and rubella vaccines.\n\nThe letter, which Kennedy wrote after the deaths of two children who had received the vaccines, used the words \"vaccine\" or \"vaccination\" eight times. This raises questions about the truthfulness of Kennedy's testimony before Congress, as reported by Fortune and Associated Press. During his confirmation process, Kennedy needed the support of skeptical Republican lawmakers and pledged to maintain vaccine policies, which he later changed.\n\nThe Department of Health and Human Services responded to questions from Associated Press, stating that the Samoa visit \"was unrelated\" to vaccines, but the documents suggest otherwise. Kennedy's visit and letter have sparked concerns about his actions and motivations, particularly given his prominent anti-vaccine activism at the time, as noted by STAT News and Fortune.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 5,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Winnipeg Free Press",
        "title": "Exclusive: RFK Jr. said a Samoa trip had nothing to do with vaccines. New documents refute that",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/27/exclusive-rfk-jr-said-a-samoa-trip-had-nothing-to-do-with-vaccines",
        "published": "2026-08-27T12:01:19.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Associated Press",
        "title": "Exclusive: RFK Jr. said a Samoa trip had nothing to do with vaccines. New documents refute that",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/27/exclusive-rfk-jr-said-a-samoa-trip-had-nothing-to-do-with-vaccines-3735335",
        "published": "2026-08-27T12:23:02.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Fortune",
        "title": "RFK told Congress he didn’t go to Samoa in 2019 to study measles vaccines — so why does his old letter mention it eight times?",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/27/rfk-told-congress-he-didnt-go-to-samoa-in-2019-to-study-measles",
        "published": "2026-08-27T13:04:47.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "PBS NewsHour Health",
        "title": "AP report: RFK Jr. said a Samoa trip had nothing to do with vaccines. New documents refute that",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/27/ap-report-rfk-jr-said-a-samoa-trip-had-nothing-to-do-with-vaccines",
        "published": "2026-08-27T13:47:22.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}