Trump Surgeon General Nominee Now Explicitly Backs Measles Vaccination
President Donald Trump’s surgeon general nominee, Dr. Casey Means, tells senators in newly released written answers that Americans should “take the measles vaccine,” reversing her refusal at a public hearing last month to directly urge parents to vaccinate their children against measles. In responses obtained by MS NOW, Means aligns herself with CMS chief Mehmet Oz and acting CDC Director Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, quoting Bhattacharya’s statement that the MMR vaccine is the most reliable way to prevent measles and calling the ongoing outbreak “largely preventable” with vaccination. Her clarification comes as South Carolina battles nearly 1,000 measles cases and CDC data show three U.S. children died of measles last year amid declining childhood immunization rates and rising vaccine skepticism among some Trump officials. Means still couches safety judgments by saying vaccines are a “key part” of infectious-disease strategy while the FDA decides whether they are safe and effective, a formulation likely to be scrutinized as the Senate health committee weighs whether to advance her nomination to the full Senate.
📌 Key Facts
- Dr. Casey Means, Trump’s nominee for U.S. surgeon general, now writes that Americans should “take the measles vaccine” after declining to say so directly at a Senate hearing last month.
- Means cites and endorses statements by CMS Administrator Mehmet Oz and acting CDC Director Dr. Jay Bhattacharya that the MMR vaccine is the most reliable way to prevent measles and calls the current outbreak largely preventable with vaccination.
- South Carolina officials report nearly 1,000 measles cases in an ongoing outbreak, and CDC data show three U.S. children died of measles last year as childhood vaccination rates have fallen.
- In her written answers, Means describes vaccines as a key part of infectious-disease public health strategy but says the FDA determines whether they are safe and effective, language that may fuel questions about how forcefully she would promote vaccines as “the Nation’s Doctor.”
📊 Relevant Data
For children born in 2020-2021, the rate of receipt of recommended childhood vaccinations by age 24 months was 70% for Asian children, 69% for White children, 65% for Hispanic children, approximately 66% for Black children (remaining stable), and 59% for American Indian/Alaska Native (AIAN) children.
Recent Changes in Children's Vaccination Rates by Race and Ethnicity — KFF
The share of kindergarten children with an exemption from one or more vaccinations rose from 2.5% in the 2019-2020 school year to 3.6% in the 2024-2025 school year, primarily driven by increases in non-medical exemptions.
Kindergarten Routine Vaccination Rates Continue to Decline — KFF
Republican parents are nearly three times as likely as Democratic parents to report skipping vaccinations for their children (22% vs. 8%), contributing to recent declines in vaccination rates among White children.
Recent Changes in Children's Vaccination Rates by Race and Ethnicity — KFF
📊 Analysis & Commentary (1)
"An opinion piece using the surgeon‑general‑nominee/vaccine episode as a jumping‑off point to argue that partisan cues and elite messaging drive science denial, and while both sides can resist scientific findings, the current pattern of organized, elite‑driven denial is stronger on the right and produces real public‑health harms."
📰 Source Timeline (1)
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