More than twenty leading medical associations have called for the resignation of the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert K. Kennedy Jr., accusing him of disregarding scientific evidence and reversing public health progress.
On Wednesday, September 3, the groups released a joint statement stating that they were seriously concerned that his policies are putting the lives of Americans in danger.
This is in response to the criticism of former Republican and Democratic presidents who have issued statements claiming that decisions made by Kennedy and leading to the firing of the CDC director last week are endangering the health of Americans.
The statement is signed by leading organizations including the Infectious Diseases Society of America, the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, the American Public Health Association, and the American Association of Immunologists.
They claim that what Kennedy is doing, especially last week when he sacked Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Susan Monarez, is weakening the nation's health infrastructure.
According to the joint statement, “Our country needs leadership that will promote open, honest dialogue, not disregard decades of lifesaving science, spread misinformation, reverse medical progress and decimate programs that keep us safe.”
“We are gravely concerned that American people will needlessly suffer and die as a result of policies that turn away from sound interventions,” they asserted.
Since his appointment, Kennedy has enacted decisions that claimed to lack scientific evidence including withdrawing federal COVID-19 vaccine recommendations for pregnant women and healthy children in May.
In June, he fired every member of the independent vaccine advisory panel at the CDC and replaced it with hand-selected advisors, including anti-vaccine activists.