Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has drawn significant criticism for asserting that a current global measles outbreak is being driven by widespread unvaccination during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In remarks, RFK Jr. stated: “We’re having a global measles outbreak right now. It’s all over the world and the measles outbreak is occurring because so many people went unvaccinated during the COVID pandemic.”

The comments reference a private journal entry by Dr. Anthony Fauci dated May 6, 2020, in which he wrote that “greater than one million children worldwide have missed their measles vaccination because of the shutdown.” Fauci also noted this situation would lead to “far, far more excess deaths from measles among children” than coronavirus deaths.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported 4,080 confirmed measles cases in the United States as of October 8, 2026 — a figure significantly higher than the total recorded throughout 2025. Pennsylvania has been particularly affected, with over 1,222 cases reported by its Department of Health as of October 14.

The state’s outbreak has sparked a dispute between Kennedy and Governor Josh Shapiro over the number of measles-related deaths and the federal response. Pennsylvania officials have reported five measles-associated deaths this year, with a sixth suspected death announced in October. The CDC has confirmed two measles-associated deaths nationwide for the current year.