Republican US senator slams Trump vaccine policy amid rising measles deaths

US Senator Bill Cassidy presses Trump’s pick for surgeon general on views over vaccines, public health.

Committee Chairman US Senator Bill Cassidy delivers an opening statement during a Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, US, July 15, 2026 [File: Evelyn Hockstein/Reuters]

Republican Senator Bill Cassidy has blamed the Trump administration’s vaccination policies for an uptick in measles deaths in the United States, where the preventable disease had previously been all but eliminated.

Cassidy , a doctor who chairs the Senate Health Committee and represents the US state of Louisiana, said on Wednesday that the government must appoint officials to key public health positions who will make decisions based on science rather than political ideology.

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“To suffer from any disease is awful, but to suffer one which is avoidable, that’s even worse,” Cassidy said.

The US is currently facing its most severe measles outbreak in more than 35 years, a development that scientists and public health experts attribute to increasing scepticism towards vaccinations that have helped largely eliminate diseases such as measles.

Cassidy stated that three people have died from a measles outbreak in the state of Pennsylvania , with a fourth death still under review.

Members of the Trump administration, including Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr. and the president himself, have been criticised for promoting debunked claims linking vaccines to autism.

The Republican senator pressed Dr Nicole Saphier, the Trump administration’s nominee for surgeon general, for a straightforward answer on whether she believes the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine causes autism.

Saphier initially stated that she has “not seen reputable evidence” that vaccines cause autism. Under further questioning from Cassidy, who called her answer a “bit of an equivocation”, she said that the MMR vaccine was “our greatest tool for combating measles” and that she did not believe that childhood vaccines cause autism.

The health committee is currently weighing Trump’s nominations of Saphier for surgeon general, along with Chris Klomp for deputy secretary of Health and Human Services and Dr Timothy Westlake to lead the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. All of whom need Senate confirmation for their roles

Dr Nicole Saphier, surgeon general nominee, testifies before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions during a confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill Wednesday, September 16, 2026, in Washington, DC [Jose Luis Magana/AP Photo]

The US has not had a surgeon general since January 2025, as Trump’s two previous picks have faced opposition and questions in the Senate about their qualifications. Saphier is a radiologist and former Fox News contributor.

Cassidy, who lost his Republican primary election in May after attracting Trump’s ire over his vote to impeach the president in 2021, has become an outspoken Republican critic of the government’s approach to vaccines and public health.

美国参议员比尔·卡西迪就疫苗和公共卫生问题向特朗普提名的卫生局长人选施压。

2026年7月15日，美国参议员比尔·卡西迪在华盛顿特区国会山举行的参议院卫生、教育、劳工和养老金委员会确认听证会上发表开幕词。[图片：Evelyn Hockstein/路透社]

共和党参议员比尔·卡西迪将美国麻疹死亡人数上升归咎于特朗普政府的疫苗接种政策，而这种可预防的疾病此前在美国几乎已被根除。

卡西迪是一位医生，他担任参议院卫生委员会主席，代表美国路易斯安那州。他周三表示，政府必须任命官员担任关键的公共卫生职位，这些官员将根据科学而不是政治意识形态做出决策。

（共3条，第1条）卫生官员称，美国已有第三人死于麻疹。

世卫组织总干事称特朗普推动疫苗接种的做法违背了“数十年的证据”，这是其中的第二个例子。

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卡西迪说：“患上任何疾病都很糟糕，但患上一种本可避免的疾病，那就更糟糕了。”

美国目前正面临 35 年来最严重的麻疹疫情，科学家和公共卫生专家认为，这是由于人们对疫苗的怀疑态度日益加深所致，而疫苗在很大程度上帮助消除了麻疹等疾病。

卡西迪表示，宾夕法尼亚州爆发麻疹疫情，已有三人死亡，第四例死亡病例仍在调查中。

特朗普政府成员，包括卫生与公众服务部部长小罗伯特·F·肯尼迪和总统本人，因宣扬疫苗与自闭症有关的已被揭穿的说法而受到批评。

这位共和党参议员向特朗普政府提名的卫生局局长妮可·萨菲尔博士施压，要求她直接回答是否认为麻疹-腮腺炎-风疹疫苗会导致自闭症。

萨菲尔最初表示，她“没有看到任何可靠的证据”证明疫苗会导致自闭症。在卡西迪的进一步追问下（卡西迪称她的回答“有点含糊其辞”），她表示麻疹、腮腺炎、风疹疫苗是“我们对抗麻疹的最有力武器”，并且她不认为儿童疫苗会导致自闭症。

卫生委员会目前正在审议特朗普对萨菲尔担任公共卫生局局长、克里斯·克隆普担任卫生与公众服务部副部长以及蒂莫西·韦斯特莱克博士担任药物滥用和精神健康服务管理局局长的提名。所有这些提名都需要参议院确认才能生效。

美国卫生局局长提名人妮可·萨菲尔博士于2026年9月16日星期三在华盛顿特区国会山出席参议院卫生、教育、劳工和养老金委员会的确认听证会并作证。[Jose Luis Magana/AP Photo]

自2025年1月以来，美国一直没有卫生局局长，因为特朗普此前提名的两位人选都因资历问题在参议院遭到反对和质疑。萨菲尔是一位放射科医生，也是前福克斯新闻撰稿人。

卡西迪在2021年投票弹劾特朗普总统后，激怒了特朗普，并在5月份的共和党初选中落败。此后，他成为共和党内一位直言不讳的批评者，批评政府在疫苗和公共卫生方面的做法。