Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has directed the CDC to develop alternative measles treatments using “existing drugs in combination with vitamins and other modalities,” according to a statement released Thursday. The plan follows Kennedy’s recent comments downplaying the severity of the highly contagious virus and promoting therapies that experts say lack scientific support.
Kennedy has previously advocated for vitamin A, the steroid budesonide, and the antibiotic clarithromycin as measles treatments. However, pediatric health experts warn these methods are “unproven and risky,” noting no known treatment shortens measles recovery.
An HHS spokesperson said the initiative will involve universities and follow rigorous scientific standards to evaluate repurposed drugs. Despite the move, HHS will continue recommending vaccination as the best defense against measles.
The guidance comes amid broader shifts under Kennedy, including a proposal requiring all new vaccines to undergo placebo-controlled trials — a change critics say could delay life-saving approvals like updated COVID shots.
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