RFK Jr. lied about Samoa trip in confirmation hearings, documents show

Newly obtained letters reveal Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. requested to study Samoa's MMR vaccines in 2019, contradicting his Senate confirmation testimony that his trip had nothing to do with vaccines. Kennedy's visit preceded a measles outbreak that killed 83 people, mostly children under five, after vaccination rates plummeted to 31%. While the Department of Health and Human Services defends Kennedy and denies he lied, critics point out that making false statements to Congress is a felony.

Kennedy confirmation hearing testimony

• ▪Senator Bill Cassidy stated in June 2026 that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. violated commitments made during confirmation, including a pledge to maintain a federal vaccine advisory committee without changes
• ▪Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was confirmed as Health Secretary by the Senate in a 52-48 vote after securing support from Republican Senator Bill Cassidy
• ▪During his Senate confirmation hearings, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. repeatedly testified that his 2019 visit to Samoa had "nothing to do with vaccines."
• ▪Robert F. Kennedy Jr. told Senator Ron Wyden during confirmation hearings that his 2019 Samoa trip was intended to introduce a medical informatics system to digitalize health records

Letter to Samoan prime minister

• ▪In his January 20, 2019 letter, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. used the words "vaccine" or "vaccination" eight times and speculated that two infant deaths were temporally associated with MMR vaccines
• ▪A January 20, 2019 letter from Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to then-Samoan Prime Minister Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi requested that his team conduct a health informatics assessment of Samoa's MMR vaccines
• ▪Then-Samoan Prime Minister Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi responded to Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in February 2019, welcoming his team's proposed independent health assessment of Samoa's MMR vaccines

Samoa measles outbreak deaths

• ▪The 2019 measles outbreak followed a drop in Samoa's vaccination rate, which fell from a 60-70% range to 31% after the government temporarily halted vaccinations
• ▪A 2019 measles outbreak in Samoa resulted in 5,707 confirmed cases and 83 deaths, the majority of which were children under the age of five

HHS defends Kennedy statements

• ▪The Department of Health and Human Services noted that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was not under oath during his congressional confirmation hearings
• ▪The Department of Health and Human Services stated that Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s 2019 visit to Samoa was unrelated to vaccines and called accusations of lying false and defamatory

Congressional accountability options

• ▪Senate procedure experts stated that lawmakers could use Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s statements as grounds for hearings or an impeachment inquiry, though such action is unlikely under the Republican-led Congress
• ▪Under United States Code, making material false statements to Congress is a felony that carries a potential prison sentence, regardless of whether the individual is under oath

Anti-vaccine activism in Samoa

• ▪During his May and June 2019 trip to Samoa, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. met with anti-vaccine activists, and public health experts stated his visit emboldened activists who hampered outbreak response efforts
• ▪In July 2018, two Samoan children died after receiving an improperly prepared MMR vaccine, leading to manslaughter guilty pleas by two nurses and a 10-month suspension of vaccinations

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