Documents Contradict Kennedy’s Testimony About Samoa Trip Linked to Measles Outbreak

Newly released documents challenge Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s congressional testimony about his 2019 trip to Samoa, suggesting the U.S. health secretary misled lawmakers when he repeatedly claimed the visit had “nothing to do with vaccines.”

Emails obtained by The Guardian and The Associated Press through a public records lawsuit reveal Kennedy’s trip occurred during a critical period when Samoa had temporarily halted its vaccination program. The documents show that embassy officials and United Nations representatives believed Kennedy’s trip was explicitly focused on vaccine safety concerns.

In one particularly revealing email, a top U.S. Embassy official in Apia wrote to then-Ambassador Scott Brown stating: “The real reason Kennedy is coming is to raise awareness about vaccinations, more specifically some of the health concerns associated with vaccinating (from his point of view).”

This contradicts Kennedy’s firm denials during his Senate confirmation hearings. When questioned by Democratic Senator Edward Markey, Kennedy twice insisted his purpose in traveling to Samoa had “nothing to do with vaccines.”

The records also reveal a U.S. Embassy employee, Benjamin Harding, helped facilitate Kennedy’s meetings with Samoan government officials, including the prime minister and health minister. The embassy eventually instructed Harding to “cease and desist” his involvement with the trip.

Senator Ron Wyden, who questioned Kennedy during his confirmation hearings, reacted strongly to these revelations. “Kennedy’s anti-vaccine agenda is directly responsible for the deaths of innocent children,” Wyden said. “Lying to Congress about his role in the deadly measles outbreak in Samoa only underscores the danger he now poses to families across America.”

The timing of Kennedy’s visit was particularly consequential. Samoa had suspended its vaccination program in 2018 after two infants died following MMR vaccinations that were improperly prepared. This ten-month pause, from July 2018 to April 2019, caused vaccination rates to plummet across the island nation.

During this vulnerable period, emails show Kennedy’s anti-vaccine organization, Children’s Health Defense, was working to arrange meetings with Samoan leadership. The group coordinated with local anti-vaccine activist Edwin Tamasese, who later helped organize Kennedy’s June 2019 visit.

Samoan officials have previously stated that Kennedy’s presence bolstered anti-vaccine sentiment just before a devastating measles outbreak struck later that year. The epidemic infected thousands and killed 83 people, primarily children under five years old.

The former Samoan health minister has told NBC News that Kennedy shared views about vaccine safety concerns during their meetings. While in Samoa, Kennedy also met with anti-vaccine activists and attended Independence Day celebrations with the prime minister.

Kennedy has maintained that he never advised anyone against vaccination and that his visit focused on introducing a “medical informatics system” to track drug safety. However, during the subsequent measles outbreak, Kennedy sent a four-page letter to Samoa’s prime minister suggesting without evidence that the infections were caused by a defective vaccine.

These revelations come at a critical moment as Kennedy leads America’s health policy amid growing measles outbreaks across the United States. Over 875 people in South Carolina have recently been infected, putting the U.S. at risk of losing its measles elimination status – a public health achievement dating back to 2000.

Kennedy’s current work reshaping federal immunization guidance and his continued public statements raising suspicions about vaccines have alarmed public health experts. His former colleague at Children’s Health Defense, Lyn Redwood, who helped arrange the Samoa trip, now reportedly works at the Department of Health and Human Services on vaccine safety issues.

A spokesman for Senate Finance Committee Democrats noted that making false statements to Congress is a crime, adding that “casual, false denials to Congress will not be swept under the rug.”

The Department of Health and Human Services did not respond to requests for comment on these revelations.