Latest news with #RobertF.KennedyJr
Hindustan Times
9 hours ago
- Health
- Hindustan Times
Michigan announces second measles as US hits 1,227 cases
Michigan has its second measles outbreak of the year, Utah has seven cases and health workers in New Mexico are rushing to contain an outbreak in a county jail. Measles It is preventable through vaccines and has been considered eliminated from the US since 2000.(Representational/AFP) But for the first time in months, Texas confirmed no additional measles cases this week tied to a major outbreak that raged through the late winter and spring. There have been 1,227 confirmed measles cases this year, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Wednesday. There are three other major outbreaks in North America. The longest, in Ontario, Canada, has resulted in 2,212 cases from mid-October through June 24. The province logged its first death June 5 in a baby who got congenital measles but also had other preexisting conditions. Another outbreak in Alberta, Canada, has sickened 1,122 as of Friday. And the Mexican state of Chihuahua had 2,485 measles cases and eight deaths as of Thursday, according to data from the state health ministry. Other U.S. states with active outbreaks — which the CDC defines as three or more related cases — include Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Montana, North Dakota and Oklahoma. In the U.S., two elementary school-aged children in the epicenter in West Texas and an adult in New Mexico have died of measles this year. All were unvaccinated. Measles is caused by a highly contagious virus that's airborne and spreads easily when an infected person breathes, sneezes or coughs. It is preventable through vaccines and has been considered eliminated from the U.S. since 2000. How many measles cases are there in Texas? Texas held steady Tuesday with 750 outbreak-related cases across 35 counties, most of them in West Texas, state data shows. Throughout the outbreak, 97 people have been hospitalized. State health officials estimated less than 1% of cases — fewer than 10 — were actively infectious as of Tuesday. Fifty-five percent of Texas' cases are in Gaines County, where the virus started spreading in a close-knit, undervaccinated Mennonite community. The county has had 413 cases since late January — just under 2% of its residents. The state also noted in its Tuesday update that there are 34 cases across 18 counties that don't have a clear link to the outbreak now, but may end up added to it after further investigation. The April 3 death in Texas was an 8-year-old child, according to Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Local health officials said the child did not have underlying health conditions and died of 'what the child's doctor described as measles pulmonary failure.' A unvaccinated child with no underlying conditions died of measles in Texas in late February; Kennedy said the child was 6. How many measles cases are there in New Mexico? New Mexico had 86 measles cases Friday. Five new cases were confirmed this week in a jail in Luna County, which prompted health officials to urge locals to get vaccinated and halted in-person visits. Seven people have been hospitalized since the outbreak started. Most of the state's cases are in Lea County. Sandoval County near Albuquerque has six cases, Eddy County has three, Doña Ana County has two. Chaves, Curry and San Juan counties have one each. An unvaccinated adult died of measles-related illness March 6. The person did not seek medical care. How many cases are there in Oklahoma? Oklahoma held steady Friday for a total of 17 confirmed and three probable cases. The state health department is not releasing which counties have cases. How many cases are there in Arizona? Arizona has four cases in Navajo County. They are linked to a single source, the county health department said June 9. All four were unvaccinated and had a history of recent international travel. How many cases are there in Colorado? Colorado has seen a total of 16 measles cases in 2025, which includes one outbreak of 10 related cases. The outbreak is linked to a Turkish Airlines flight that landed at Denver International Airport in mid-May. Four of the people were on the flight with the first person diagnosed — an out-of-state traveler not included in the state count — while five got measles from exposure in the airport and one elsewhere. Health officials are also tracking an unrelated case in a Boulder County resident. The person was fully vaccinated but had "recently traveled to Europe, where there are a large number of measles cases,' the state health department said. Other counties that have seen measles this year include Archuleta and Pueblo. How many cases are there in Georgia? Georgia has an outbreak of three cases in metro Atlanta, with the most recent infection confirmed June 18. The state has confirmed six total cases in 2025. The remaining three are part of an unrelated outbreak from January. How many cases are there in Illinois? Illinois health officials confirmed a four-case outbreak on May 5 in the far southern part of the state. It grew to eight cases as of June 6, but no new cases were reported in the following weeks, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health. The state's other two cases so far this year were in Cook County, and are unrelated to the southern Illinois outbreak. How many cases are there in Iowa? Iowa has had six total measles cases in 2025. Four are part of an outbreak in eastern Johnson County, among members of the same household. County health officials said the people are isolating at home, so they don't expect additional spread. How many cases are there in Kansas? Kansas added one more case this week for a total of 80 across 11 counties in the southwestern part of the state, with three hospitalizations. All but three of the cases are connected, and most are in Gray County. How many cases are there in Michigan? Health officials in Grand Traverse County in northern Michigan confirmed an outbreak of three cases Tuesday. The state declared an earlier outbreak of four cases in Montcalm County, near Grand Rapids in western Michigan, over June 2. The state has had 16 cases total in 2025. How many cases are there in Montana? Montana had 23 measles cases as of Friday, an increase of one this week. Fifteen were in Gallatin County, which is where the first cases showed up — Montana's first in 35 years. Flathead and Yellowstone counties had two cases each, and Hill County had four cases. There are outbreaks in neighboring North Dakota and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbia and Saskatchewan. How many cases are there in North Dakota? North Dakota, which hadn't seen measles since 2011, was up to 34 cases as of June 6, but has held steady since. Two of the people have been hospitalized. All of the people with confirmed cases were not vaccinated. There were 16 cases in Williams County in western North Dakota on the Montana border. On the eastern side of the state, there were 10 cases in Grand Forks County and seven cases in Cass County. Burke County, in northwest North Dakota on the border of Saskatchewan, Canada, had one case. How many cases are there in Utah? Utah had seven total measles cases as of Friday. At least three of the cases are linked, according to the state health department. State epidemiologist Dr. Leisha Nolen said she is aware of at least three different measles clusters in the state. She expects to see more cases because there are other unvaccinated people who were exposed. At least two of the people infected had to be hospitalized. Two are pregnant. Where else is measles showing up in the U.S.? Measles cases also have been reported this year in Alaska, Arkansas, California, District of Columbia, Florida, Hawaii, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Vermont, Virginia and Washington. Health officials declared earlier outbreaks in Indiana, Ohio and Pennsylvania over after six weeks of no new cases. Tennessee's outbreak also appears to be over. Cases and outbreaks in the U.S. are frequently traced to someone who caught the disease abroad. The CDC said in May that more than twice as many measles have come from outside of the U.S. compared to May of last year. Most of those are in unvaccinated Americans returning home. In 2019, the U.S. saw 1,274 cases and almost lost its status of having eliminated measles. What do you need to know about the MMR vaccine? The best way to avoid measles is to get the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine. The first shot is recommended for children between 12 and 15 months old and the second between 4 and 6 years old. Getting another MMR shot as an adult is harmless if there are concerns about waning immunity, the CDC says. People who have documentation of receiving a live measles vaccine in the 1960s don't need to be revaccinated, but people who were immunized before 1968 with an ineffective vaccine made from 'killed' virus should be revaccinated with at least one dose, the agency said. People who have documentation that they had measles are immune and those born before 1957 generally don't need the shots because so many children got measles back then that they have 'presumptive immunity." Measles has a harder time spreading through communities with high vaccination rates — above 95% — due to 'herd immunity.' But childhood vaccination rates have declined nationwide since the pandemic and more parents are claiming religious or personal conscience waivers to exempt their kids from required shots. What are the symptoms of measles? Measles first infects the respiratory tract, then spreads throughout the body, causing a high fever, runny nose, cough, red, watery eyes and a rash. The rash generally appears three to five days after the first symptoms, beginning as flat red spots on the face and then spreading downward to the neck, trunk, arms, legs and feet. When the rash appears, the fever may spike over 104 degrees Fahrenheit, according to the CDC. Most kids will recover from measles, but infection can lead to dangerous complications such as pneumonia, blindness, brain swelling and death. How can you treat measles? There's no specific treatment for measles, so doctors generally try to alleviate symptoms, prevent complications and keep patients comfortable.
The Hill
17 hours ago
- Health
- The Hill
FDA expanding COVID vaccine warnings over rare heart side effect
The Food and Drug Administration is now requiring two common COVID-19 vaccines to update their warning labels to include information on two rare heart side effects. Myocarditis — inflammation of the heart muscle — and pericarditis — inflammation of the thin sac surrounding the heart — are two conditions that a small number of people have experienced after receiving the mRNA COVID-19 shot. The rare cases of myocarditis have mainly impacted adolescent and young adult men about a week after getting the shot, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Most of the reported cases of the condition have been mild. Moderna and Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines have included information on their warning labels about the conditions since 2021. The updated warnings will now feature information on how the conditions have been seen most commonly among boys aged 12 and older and young men as old as 24. The updated labels will also state that the risk of developing myocarditis or pericarditis is about eight per one million doses in babies at least 6 months old to adults as old as 64. For males, the number jumps to about 27 cases per million doses for those ages 12-24. Earlier warning labels on the shots said that the risks were highest among adolescent men between ages 12-17, according to the The Associated Press. The data on the updated labels also appears to conflict with previous findings by CDC scientists who concluded that the shots did not pose an increased risk of either myocarditis or pericarditis, the outlet added. The FDA released the updated labels shortly after the Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr's newly remade federal vaccine advisory panel met to review whether the COVID-19 vaccine should continue to be recommended to healthy children and pregnant women. Kennedy dismissed all 17 previous members of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) earlier this month, accusing them of conflicts of interest. He replaced them two days later with an 8-person group that includes several anti-vaccine voices.
France 24
21 hours ago
- Health
- France 24
US signals 'powerful shift' in vaccine policy as RFK Jr fires experts
An advisory panel for US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr has voted to rescind recommendations for the flu vaccine, The New York Times reports. Kennedy recently fired 17 experts on the advisory panel, replacing them with eight anti-vaxxers. On Thursday the panel voted to walk back vaccine recommendations for the common flu. The reason? A common (and false) argument of anti-vaxxers: that thimerosol, an ingredient in the flu vaccine is linked to autism. The Times says the decision signals a "powerful shift" in the way federal officials approach vaccines. It also delivers the first blows to a scientific process that has provided effective and tested vaccines to Americans for decades. It's important to note, as the Australian academic website The Conversation explains, that the preservative thimerosol is mercury-based and used in some drug products because it prevents contamination by killing microbes. However, it is hardly ever used in flu vaccines today. The website explains that the argument that vaccines cause autism first surfaced in 1998 when a now-discredited report in the medical journal The Lancet was published, claiming that several children developed autism following the flu vaccine. The Financial Times reports that the Trump administration will also stop funding for GAVI, the global vaccine group that provide free shots for meningitis, malaria and other disease prevention to people in poor countries. Kennedy says the alliance has ignored science and failed to justify billions of dollars the US gives in funding. The US being the alliance's top donor, this decision will sharply dent GAVI's efforts to raise over $9 billion for vaccination campaigns dedicated to a half a billion children in the next five years. The Washington Post's editors, meanwhile, profile Susan Monarez, a respected scientist who is acting director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and who could be on track to hold the position permanently. She had a confirmation hearing this week with US senators and impressed with her ability to avoid contradicting Kennedy's decision and avoid endorsing it at the same time. The Post's editors say that if confirmed, she could be a real impediment to those seeking to upend vaccine policies that have saved countless lives. French newspaper Libération looks at the famine in Gaza on its front page and asks the question: Is famine being used as a weapon of war by Israel in Gaza? The paper investigates the chaotic distribution of humanitarian aid in the Strip. Liberation explains that the system of aid is built around the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), an American NGO and the only organisation allowed to distribute aid. Traditional NGOs are refusing to work with the GHF, telling Libération they believe it has militarised humanitarian aid and facilitated the chaos. Over 500 people have been killed since the GHF set up its aid distribution points. Libération also accuses the Israeli army of setting up aid mainly in the south of the enclave, cutting off aid to the rest of the population – a form of ethnic cleansing, it says. Finally, the controversial nuptials of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos are underway in Venice this weekend. His opulent three-day wedding celebration has drawn support from Venetian business owners who are happy to cater to the hordes of rappers, celebrities and tech billionaires descending on the Italian city. Nonetheless, it's sparked widespread protests from locals and activists fed up with the added strain it will put on a region that's already suffering from overtourism. Il Giorno, the Italian paper, looks at the controversial wedding of "Mister Amazon" and Lauren Sanchez. In many ways, The New York Times says, San Giorgio, where emperors once met with popes, is fit to host the patron of Protesters say it's not about the wedding but what it represents: the Americanisation of an inherently European city, and a tech billionaire who's cosied up to US President Donald Trump.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Global vaccine group Gavi secures $9 billion after funding summit
LONDON (Reuters) -Global vaccine group Gavi has secured $9 billion for its work over the next five years helping to immunize the world's poorest children, its board chair, Jose Manuel Barroso, said on Wednesday. The group announced the total at the end of a fundraising summit in Brussels. It includes new pledges from donors like the United Kingdom and the Gates Foundation, as well as money left after COVID-19. It did not include a pledge from the United States. Earlier on Wednesday, U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr said that the United States would no longer fund Gavi and accused it of ignoring vaccine safety, without citing any evidence. In response, Gavi said safety was its primary concern.
American Press
3 days ago
- Health
- American Press
Kennedy's new vaccine advisers meet for first time
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (Special to the American Press) U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s new vaccine advisers began their first meeting Wednesday under intense scrutiny from medical experts worried about Americans' access to lifesaving shots. First on the agenda is an awkward scenario: Kennedy already announced COVID-19 vaccines will no longer be recommended for healthy children or pregnant women, and his new advisers aren't scheduled to vote on whether they agree. Yet government scientists prepared meeting materials calling vaccination 'the best protection' during pregnancy — and said most children hospitalized for COVID-19 over the past year were unvaccinated. COVID-19 remains a public health threat, resulting in 32,000 to 51,000 U.S. deaths and more than 250,000 hospitalizations since last fall, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Most at risk for hospitalization are seniors and children under 2 — especially infants under 6 months who could have some protection if their mom got vaccinated during pregnancy, according to the CDC's presentation. It's one signal that this week's two-day meeting of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices isn't business as usual. Another sign: Shortly before the meeting, a Virginia-based obstetrician and gynecologist stepped down from the committee, bringing the panel's number to just seven. The Trump administration said Dr. Michael Ross withdrew during a customary review of members' financial holdings. The meeting opened as the American Academy of Pediatrics announced that it will continue publishing its own vaccine schedule for children but now will do so independently of the ACIP, calling it 'no longer a credible process.' The panel, created more than 60 years ago, helps the CDC determine who should be vaccinated against a long list of diseases, and when. Those recommendations have a big impact on whether insurance covers vaccinations and where they're available, such as at pharmacies. Earlier this month, Kennedy abruptly dismissed the existing 17-member expert panel and handpicked eight replacements, including several anti-vaccine voices. And a number of the CDC's top vaccine scientists — including some who lead the reporting of data and the vetting of presentations at ACIP meetings — have resigned or been moved out of previous positions. The highly unusual moves prompted a last-minute plea from a prominent Republican senator to delay this week's meeting. Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, a physician who chairs the chamber's health committee, said Monday that many of Kennedy's chosen panelists lack the required expertise and 'may even have a preconceived bias' against new vaccine technologies. In a House hearing Tuesday, Kennedy defended his purge, saying the old panel had been 'a template for medical malpractice.' Rep. Kim Schrier, a pediatrician and Democrat from Washington state, told Kennedy: 'I will lay all responsibility for every death from a vaccine-preventable illness at your feet.' Committee will vote on RSV protections The two-day meeting's agenda on was abruptly changed last week. Discussion of COVID-19 shots will open the session on Wednesday. Later in the day, the committee will take up RSV, with votes expected. On Thursday, the committee will vote on fall flu vaccinations and on the use of a preservative in certain flu shots. RSV, or respiratory syncytial virus, is a common cause of cold-like symptoms that can be dangerous for infants. In 2023, U.S. health officials began recommending two new measures to protect infants — a lab-made antibody for newborns and a vaccine for pregnant women — that experts say likely drove an improvement in infant mortality. The committee will discuss another company's newly approved antibody shot, but the exact language for the vote was not released prior to the meeting. 'I think there may be a theme of soft-pedaling or withdrawing recommendations for healthy pregnant women and healthy children,' even though they are at risk from vaccine-preventable diseases, said Lawrence Gostin, a public health law expert at Georgetown University who co-authored a recent medical journal commentary criticizing the COVID-19 vaccination decision. Flu shot recommendations to be debated At its June meetings, the committee usually refreshes guidance for Americans 6 month and older to get a flu shot, and helps greenlight the annual fall vaccination campaign. But given the recent changes to the committee and federal public health leadership, it's unclear how routine topics will be treated, said Jason Schwartz, a Yale University health policy researcher who has studied the committee. Thursday also promises controversy. The advisory panel is set to consider a preservative in a subset of flu shots that Kennedy and some antivaccine groups have falsely contended is tied to autism. In preparation, the CDC posted a new report confirming that research shows no link between the preservative, thimerosal, and autism or any other neurodevelopmental disorders. Gostin said the agenda appears to be 'a combination of what we would normally expect ACIP to cover along with a mixture of potential conspiracy theories,' he said. 'We clearly are in a new normal that's highly skeptical of vaccine science.' The committee's recommendations traditionally go to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention director. Historically, nearly all are accepted and then used by insurance companies in deciding what vaccines to cover. But the CDC currently has no director, so the committee's recommendations have been going to Kennedy, and he has yet to act on a couple recommendations ACIP made in April. The CDC director nominee, Susan Monarez, is slated to go before a Senate committee on Wednesday.
