The more voices, big and small, the better. I started a private weekly newsletter at the beginning of COVID, preferring that to the noise of so-so media. But the times, they are changing and demand as large a collective voice as possible, so I joined Substack about a month ago.
Although I know Paul Offit from his vaccine work and positive voice on the VRBPAC and ACIP committees and tv interviews, I wasn't aware of his Substack. So I was pleasantly surprised to see the name "Beyond the Noise," because I had included a "Noise to Signal" section in mine to separate commentary from my main mission of translating data - just the facts.
Shortly after the election in November, way before any Senate confirmation hearings, I wrote of the harm Kennedy would do. I've posted it on my new Substack under "Noise to Signal" to show that the concerns were unfortunately not undue (https://covidandvaccineupdate.substack.com/p/theres-no-vaccine-that-is-safe-and).
Others have remarked on smaller voices receiving unwanted canned replies from Cassidy. Hopefully, Dr. Cassidy will bring more to the table for his physician colleague, Dr. Offit, than another can of Spam.
Next Wednesday's Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee (HELP, appropriately named for the times) will be an opportunity for a public accounting from both Kennedy and committee chair-physician Senator Cassidy to whom he made promises about vaccines to gain support for confirmation to head HHS. As we've seen, these promises turned out to be lies. It will be interesting to see how both men handle this reality. Tune in live (https://www.help.senate.gov/rep/newsroom/press/media-advisory-senate-help-committee-to-hold-hearing-with-secretary-kennedy-on-hhs-budget-1).
In addition, the VRBPAC meeting to discuss the 2025-2026 COVID vaccines on May 22 was finally put on the FDA calendar today. That will also be on a live webcast.
I disagree with paul about politics but i appreciate his persistance to put grievances on the side and focus on helping to improve the health of the people
I wrote a very similar letter to Cassidy about a month ago, I am a healthcare, professional and former scientist. I got a canned response. It would be great if you could meet with Cassidy in person honestly since you might carry a lot more weight than a simple citizen. I believe cabinet members can be impeached and this needs to happen ASAP.
Did you send the letter by snailmail? Or electronically?*
Could you post the canned response? It would really be good to see what you asked, too.
*As I posted above: I think paper is a better method, because it has heft and people have to read it. It's how Amnesty International works/or worked.... I once asked them about this, and they pointed out, that if some ministry gets literally a ton of paper mail, they have to deal with it.
Also, it’s not even just about vaccines anymore, it’s the chemtrail bullshit, 5G, and the spouting of tons of medical conspiracy theories. It’s essentially everything. RFK needs to be impeached.
Thanks for the letters. Reading the exchange is important. You wrote clearly and voiced your concerns in a calm tone. It will take many of these letters to give Dr. Cassidy the courage to begin moving in the right direction.
About RFK Jr.: Ever since I wrote about the rise of Nazism and Fascism in high school (I was at the Intl. School), I have been curious about the functioning of that rhetorical trick called conspiracy theory. Some people genuinely believe in their incredible hallucinations. I was surprised to find many friends drift off into them during the pandemic. Needless to say, some of those friends have disappeared from my life.
What few seem to realize, is that conspiracy theories fuel businesses. The guys and gals up top are scammers*, and RFK Jr. is no different. They prey not only on the gullible but also on the idealistic... I won't bore you with the details, also, I wrote it all up here on substack for the handful of followers... And I wrote about CThories as well...
*A note: Some time in late spring of 2020, some guy started selling parcels in Paraguay for people "wanting to escape the tyranny of the German government..." You know, the masks and all that. It was manufactured hysteria. The article passed on FB, and had lots of thumbs up.... I wrote a little warning, this is a total scam.... Turns out I was right.
This forum needs a laugh react. Nothing surprises me coming out of Floriduh. The scientific and medical illiteracy, and complete lack of critical thinking ability in this country is astounding and appalling.
Oh wait, just don’t even bother responding to anything. I was perusing the comments section and the pages that you follow, and it’s pretty obvious that you are asking totally disingenuous questions and essentially JAQing off. The fact that you point to RFK’s book, Robert Malone, who is not only widely discredited, but an extremist pseudoscience and supplement grifter, probably take the children’s defense fund as gospel… It’s very obvious that you have no desire to learn and have a genuine discussion if this is where you are coming from. Others have ignored your comments since your agenda is clear and I am now going do the same.
Senator Cassidy, I will undoubtedly get a canned response to this message, but as a fellow healthcare professional and a former research scientist, I am compelled to write to stop the waste of money and travesty of having a known pseudoscience non-scientist, non-medical professional, and vaccine denier David Geier explore a so-called link of vaccines to autism that has been debunked through massive and multiple well designed studies involving millions of participants.
Both David and his father Mark Geier have been sanctioned by the Maryland medical board, Mark lost his license for gross misconduct, and David is not even a physician, he has a bachelors in biology and was sanctioned for practicing medicine without a license. They are also both known for falsifying data in the past with so-called studies that manipulated data to show vaccine harm. They are the antithesis to science and true scientific discovery and research, going in with an already predetermined conclusion and working backwards to get the result that they want. This is unethical and dangerous.
You approved RFK Junior with conditions. Well, this is a test for you, the appointment of David Geier to this research position with zero qualifications and huge conflicts of interest is a danger to public health, not just to your Louisiana constituents, but to the general public. For once, just do the right thing and oppose this appointment. Start a hearing. Investigate. Do something. This is not a partisan issue. This is about the public health of all Americans.
It was electronic, I wrote it literally right after the appointment of Geier and it was based on that. Here was the canned response:
Thank you for your recent letter regarding President Trump’s Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) nominee, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. The HHS Secretary is responsible for overseeing America’s health care infrastructure, and I voted to confirm Secretary Kennedy on February 13th, 2025.
As a doctor and chairman of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, I took this decision very seriously. We both believe that ultra-processed foods, chronic illness, and obesity pose serious threats to American public health and that the National Institutes of Health must be reformed. I look forward to working closely with Secretary Kennedy to address these issues and make America healthy again.
Before the confirmation vote, I spoke with Secretary Kennedy and the White House multiple times over the weekend, including the morning of the vote in the Senate Finance Committee. We had in-depth conversations about the medical literature and the science behind the safety of vaccines. Secretary Kennedy acknowledged the need to protect the public health benefit of vaccination. He has also committed that he would work within the current vaccine approval and safety monitoring systems and not establish parallel systems, and he will maintain the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices without changes. He committed that the HELP Committee Chair, whether it’s me or someone else, may choose a representative on any board or commission formed to review vaccine safety.
Secretary Kennedy and the administration committed that he and I will have an unprecedently close collaborative working relationship if he was confirmed. We will meet or speak multiple times a month. Secretary Kennedy has asked for my input into hiring decisions at HHS, beyond Senate-confirmed positions. This collaboration will allow us to work well together and therefore be more effective.
These commitments, and my expectation that we can have a great relationship to make America healthy again, is the basis of my support. He is the Secretary, but I believe he will also be a partner in working for this end.
The constitutional responsibility of advice and consent on presidential nominees is one of the most important functions of the Senate. Please know that I will keep your thoughts in mind as I work with Secretary Kennedy to implement a pro-American health agenda.
I will continue to represent the views of my state and do so through hearing from constituents like you. Please continue to reach out, either by phone or by email, when you have another question or concern. You can reach my office in Washington DC at 202-224-5824 or submit an email at https://www.cassidy.senate.gov/contact.
“He committed that the HELP Committee Chair, whether it’s me or someone else, may choose a representative on any board or commission formed to review vaccine safety.”
This reflects a classic square one fallacy—the assumption that established scientific consensus requires revalidation simply to appease political pressure. Vaccine safety has already been thoroughly evaluated by independent, multidisciplinary experts. To frame this as an open question is to erode trust in evidence-based medicine
Dr. Offit, thank you for all you have done and are continuing to do for America’s most precious resource during your career. I had a child who had to be hospitalized with rotavirus before the vaccine existed and am glad that, thanks to you, my grandchildren will never have to suffer that. I believe that RFK jr is the most dangerous man in America and hope and pray that Senator Cassidy will listen to you and the other physicians who are sounding the same alarm. I heard you on a podcast some time ago saying that you had a telephone interview with RFK jr. some years ago and that afterward he lied about several things the two of you had discussed. If I remember correctly you taped the interview…is there any way you could make that interview public?
Thank you….this is what I heard Offit say on the podcast, but for some reason thought that HE had taped it. I wish Jr. could be persuaded to to release this tape, if he did indeed tape it. Which, sadly, is probably a very large “if.”
Thank you for writing this much needed testament to the value of vaccines and the upsetting falsehoods of RFK Jr's statements. As a pediatrician, I am horrified and incredibly saddened by what is currently happening and what will happen in the future with regard to vaccine preventable diseases! Thank you for being our voice!!
To be clear, RFK Jr. has never told anyone to not get a vaccine. He clearly says that everyone is entitled to vaccines as long as they receive proper informed consent. Have you read his book "Vax-Unvax Let The Science Speak"?
Right and he is moving the goal post to what proper informed consent means because he is creating all these false claims that vaccines injure people much more than science has shown over the last decades. He's making crap up.
have you ever watched the documentary “Vaxxed, Vaxxed 2 or Vaxxed 3? can be found at the Children’s health defense website. if you have children i would hope you truly subscribe to this website for true information , incredible podcasts by doctors and parents. Also - you can check the CDC’s own website VAERS (vaccine adverse events reporting system) which will show you about the injured. another great documentary is The Unseen Crisis.- about the people who were injured in the covid clinical trials.
If Dr Offit has done so much for our health, then why do we have a chronic disease health crisis? What has he done other than promote vaccines, pharmaceutical drugs, and medical interventions?
Two years ago I was appalled to find a copy of a book claiming that the COVID vaccine had killed hundreds of otherwise young healthy individuals, foreward by RFK JR. , in my small rural town public library. For the first time ever, I filed a request for the director to review the book for its appropriateness in the collection. I had done some research and found that the reviewers at Science Feedback indeed debunked the claim in the book. I didn’t think it was appropriate for the library to be offering disinformation. The interim director sent me a scolding letter in response, attempting to educate me about the importance of intellectual freedom and diversity, of providing a variety of viewpoints. Oh boy! I discussed with many community members, including the former library director of more than 25 years, and she suggested that I donate a book to the collection that would offer a counter to this book full of lies. I chose Dr. Offit’s book, Vaccinated. I never received acknowledgement or thanks for the donation but I did check and make sure it was added to the collection. It sits there in the stacks right next to Dowd’s Cause Unknown.
I’m going to make an assumption that you are a female based on your name. Regardless of your gender you should be outraged that RFK Jr has caused the defunding of important women’s health studies which have been crucial to our long overdue understanding of health issues specific to females, apparently so that he can waste money on poorly designed “studies” to prove his erroneous belief that vaccines cause autism. This despite the many studies with good design that have proven they do not. Designing a study to prove your confirmed belief is not only unethical and wasteful, it’s the antithesis of the scientific process.
No I haven’t and I’m not going to because when I search his name at Science Feedback there are way too many reviews of his statements that indicate they are false or misleading. I have no jnterest in reading anything more he has written as he cannot be trusted to tell the truth or interpret scientific studies correctly and honestly when they don’t align with his belief system.
Well, we know from the two unvaccinated kids who have recently died of measles as well as all those who suffered and died prior to vaccines being available, that vaccines can and do protect against severe infection. Graveyards are full of children who didn’t survive viral illnesses pre-vaccines.
Julie, there is no story. There are not two sides. It’s science. It’s the scientific process, which RFK Jr clearly either doesn’t understand or doesn’t value or he’s just lying. Science is always evolving, correcting mistaken ideas with the gold standard randomized controlled double blind studies whenever ethical to do so. That’s why we are always replicating experiments to see if hypothesis and conclusions hold up. Scientists are objective. They have hypotheses but not beliefs they are trying to manipulate data to prove. I will never understand how people can’t wrap their heads around this.
In most cases it would be unethical to do randomized double blind controlled studies on children. I’m sure you can understand that. It would mean purposely exposing some children (placebo group) to a pathogen that could potentially make them very ill or even kill them or injure them for life (think polio just for one), without the protection that the control group gets (vaccine).
I know that's exactly what they say! But whose ethics"? Only theirs! They are not testing in some huge outbreak where there would be a great risk to the controls, & there are many people who could serve, who would be glad NOT to be vaccinated.
It should be plain to see that this method of testing OBSCURES side effects of the tested product. Then, only 4 or 5-day observation like for the Hep-B vax.! How is it "ethical" to release barely tested products, coerce people to use them, & then gaslight those people when they report injury!
Are you a scientist that regularly directs and implements studies?
Do you know the usual span of time where a person would get a reaction to a vaccine better than a scientist? Do you absolutely know that they haven't also done long -term studies on people?
They tested during a huge outbreak of covid but this still wasn't good enough for half of you.
This is fact not opinion. How about you tell me about your medical background, all the peer-reviewed studies that you have published and implemented? No, you read a book..
hi Mollie. Yes. I do read a lot of books. You do not have to be a rocket scientist or write peer reviewed papers to do research and understand what is happening in this world. Although you should actually subscribe to Dr. Peter McCullough, a very well known cardiologist (American) who has written over 700 peer reviewed papers
A brilliant letter and right on point. How the Senate could have confirmed this anti vaccine fraud in the first place should be grounds for removal from office. And you didn’t even have to mention H5N1 which is very scary and clearly infects all kinds of birds and animals of which we could be next.
Exactly nothing would have changed and now it's going to be much worse.
Listen I'm all about trying to look at the chemicals in our food and water. It's the vaccines and cutting resources for more studies that he needs to back off of.
Everything here is 100% correct except I would have called Kennedy a lying, heartless sack of sh*t over a disinsformer. Cassidy has no power here. Only Trump can remove Wormbrain and sadly I do not see that happening. But thank you for doing your best Dr. Offit, unlike our medical organizations (AMA, AAP, ACOG, AAFP) who are too chickensh*t to call for Kennedy's termination.
For those who watched the other HELP committee hearings for Bhaatacharya and Makary (and part of Jr.'s), Cassidy asked pointed and relevant questions and pressed them for committed answers but the evasiveness and dodging was telling of the future of MAHA's true intent. Other HELP committee Senators' had obviously already planned to vote party line. (except McConnell) Cassidy needs support from other Senators or Representatives to consider change.
Thank you for continuing to provide constructive science-based health information to the public. I’ve followed your science outreach work since I first got involved with Sciam blogs.
Offit’s science hasn’t done anything to end our chronic disease, health crisis. He promotes vaccines, pharmaceutical drugs, and medical interventions as the best way towards optimal health. It doesn’t seem to be working.
As a fellow pediatrician, I am in full agreement with your letter. Sadly, Kennedy’s confirmation was advanced for political expediency without understanding the repercussions that would occur. As the AAP did not come out forcefully against Kennedy’s confirmation for the sake of remaining nonpartisan, I called Sen. Cassidy’s office daily to ask him to consider his oath as a physician before that of a Senator and put the welfare of children first….it was for naught. Hopefully he can redeem himself in the upcoming hearings.
I hope they make it easier!! My cousins daughter is disabled from the HPV vaccine and the process is ridiculous!!! And I am sure you know about the neurologist who proved in court his daughter got autism from a vaccine and won in court. But the government wants to hide that.
The neurologist (Dr Poling) did NOT prove his daughter Hannah got autism from a vaccine.
It was deemed likely that vaccines triggered a flare of her underlying mitochondrial disorder, which manifested as an encephalopathy (which had autistic-like features).
That’s a risk kids with mito disorders face every time they get something that can cause oxidative stress, such as infections (Hannah also had an ear infection).
1) how do you know your daughter was "diabled from the HPV vaccine?" What is her disability and what is the incidence of that disability in HPV vaccinated kids? 2) you are flat wrong about the autism claim. AND a jury does not decide science, scientists do!!
"Would you call yourself a vaccine injury denier? Have you read all the vaccine package inserts?"
Would you call yourself an "argument by package insert" idiot? Because THAT is what you are, you stupid uneducated infanticidal maniac and child killer. Do you also use the VAERS database for the purpose for which it specifically says is NOT appropriate. Of course you do, because you are a stupid uneducated infanticidal maniac and child killer
I DO DISRESPECT FOOLS WHO SPREAD DEADLY DISINFORMATION.
And it's not a matter of not willing to have a civil discourse, it's a matter of not willing to have any discourse with an uneducated fool who is using long debunked false arguments in favour of an utterly failed hypothesis because they don't have a goddamn clue how science works.
You have no idea what the information in a package insert represents, just as you almost certainly have no idea what the VAERS database is for. You also don't want to be educated regarding them. All you are interested in is using anything that you have been fooled into thinking favours your unsupportable conclusion regarding vaccinations.
YOU CAN HELP SAVE LIVES - INSTEAD OF HELPING TO END THEM! - BY ACTUALLY LEARNING SOME SCIENCE INSTEAD OF FAKING IT.
Of course, if it happened to one person out of millions they have to put it in there for disclosure and I'm glad they do. But it does not mean it happens to multiple people. Yes, it is a risk but the benefits far outweigh the risks.
What is Dr Offit doing to acknowledge vaccine injuries and to help those who have been affected? It appears he is more concerned about protecting the pharmaceutical industry and vaccine manufacturers.
Greatly appreciate that you continue to make the case against RFK,Jr. in a measured way with facts, data, and science. It’s a very compelling narrative.
JFK jr. has fallen far, far away from the family tree. He is not a doctor, he is not informed about scientific evidence, and he is not the right person for the job he has been given. He needs to be removed from this role. His presence is a hindrance to the practice of good medicine and could result in unnecessary deaths or permanent damage to individuals in our great country. He is a very real danger to the proper use of medical care in the United States.
I understand that this is the only way you believe you can be persuasive and appreciate your engagement in this way. Unfortunately, every R vote is solely a loyalty test to the King. If Cassidy actually based his vote on the logic and evidentiary strength of your argument, he wouldn't have voted to confirm. Cassidy may undertake some perfunctory pushback at a hearing, but in the end the loyalty test is dispositive.
Thank you for doing this.
I was thoroughly disgusted when Dr Cassidy voted to approve RFK Jr's nomination to begin with, but of course that's now water under the bridge.
Your persistent efforts to effect real changes in HHS now, and your appearances on the media and in print are not unnoticed.
The more voices, big and small, the better. I started a private weekly newsletter at the beginning of COVID, preferring that to the noise of so-so media. But the times, they are changing and demand as large a collective voice as possible, so I joined Substack about a month ago.
Although I know Paul Offit from his vaccine work and positive voice on the VRBPAC and ACIP committees and tv interviews, I wasn't aware of his Substack. So I was pleasantly surprised to see the name "Beyond the Noise," because I had included a "Noise to Signal" section in mine to separate commentary from my main mission of translating data - just the facts.
Shortly after the election in November, way before any Senate confirmation hearings, I wrote of the harm Kennedy would do. I've posted it on my new Substack under "Noise to Signal" to show that the concerns were unfortunately not undue (https://covidandvaccineupdate.substack.com/p/theres-no-vaccine-that-is-safe-and).
Others have remarked on smaller voices receiving unwanted canned replies from Cassidy. Hopefully, Dr. Cassidy will bring more to the table for his physician colleague, Dr. Offit, than another can of Spam.
What exactly are the harms that he has done so far?
Do you by chance subscribe to Dr. Robert Malone on Substack? He just wrote a really good article today about "the Media and the measles outbreak"
Next Wednesday's Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee (HELP, appropriately named for the times) will be an opportunity for a public accounting from both Kennedy and committee chair-physician Senator Cassidy to whom he made promises about vaccines to gain support for confirmation to head HHS. As we've seen, these promises turned out to be lies. It will be interesting to see how both men handle this reality. Tune in live (https://www.help.senate.gov/rep/newsroom/press/media-advisory-senate-help-committee-to-hold-hearing-with-secretary-kennedy-on-hhs-budget-1).
In addition, the VRBPAC meeting to discuss the 2025-2026 COVID vaccines on May 22 was finally put on the FDA calendar today. That will also be on a live webcast.
I disagree with paul about politics but i appreciate his persistance to put grievances on the side and focus on helping to improve the health of the people
I wrote a very similar letter to Cassidy about a month ago, I am a healthcare, professional and former scientist. I got a canned response. It would be great if you could meet with Cassidy in person honestly since you might carry a lot more weight than a simple citizen. I believe cabinet members can be impeached and this needs to happen ASAP.
I second this!!!
Agree!
why?
I wrote senator Cassidy as well, but from out of state. Atleast you got a canned response. I got nothing. Thanks for that effort Meryl.
I’m out of state as well! It took a long time (a month?) to get that canned response so I’m sure you’ll get it eventually. 😡
Same here. Sent a letter to Dr. Cassidy.
Retired medical researcher
A question and a request:
Did you send the letter by snailmail? Or electronically?*
Could you post the canned response? It would really be good to see what you asked, too.
*As I posted above: I think paper is a better method, because it has heft and people have to read it. It's how Amnesty International works/or worked.... I once asked them about this, and they pointed out, that if some ministry gets literally a ton of paper mail, they have to deal with it.
Also, it’s not even just about vaccines anymore, it’s the chemtrail bullshit, 5G, and the spouting of tons of medical conspiracy theories. It’s essentially everything. RFK needs to be impeached.
Thanks for the letters. Reading the exchange is important. You wrote clearly and voiced your concerns in a calm tone. It will take many of these letters to give Dr. Cassidy the courage to begin moving in the right direction.
About RFK Jr.: Ever since I wrote about the rise of Nazism and Fascism in high school (I was at the Intl. School), I have been curious about the functioning of that rhetorical trick called conspiracy theory. Some people genuinely believe in their incredible hallucinations. I was surprised to find many friends drift off into them during the pandemic. Needless to say, some of those friends have disappeared from my life.
What few seem to realize, is that conspiracy theories fuel businesses. The guys and gals up top are scammers*, and RFK Jr. is no different. They prey not only on the gullible but also on the idealistic... I won't bore you with the details, also, I wrote it all up here on substack for the handful of followers... And I wrote about CThories as well...
https://mradkai.substack.com/p/rfk-jr-from-the-annals-of-ass-covering
*A note: Some time in late spring of 2020, some guy started selling parcels in Paraguay for people "wanting to escape the tyranny of the German government..." You know, the masks and all that. It was manufactured hysteria. The article passed on FB, and had lots of thumbs up.... I wrote a little warning, this is a total scam.... Turns out I was right.
Did you see today in The Defender article on the Children's Health Defense website that Florida is banning weather modification and geoengineering?
This forum needs a laugh react. Nothing surprises me coming out of Floriduh. The scientific and medical illiteracy, and complete lack of critical thinking ability in this country is astounding and appalling.
Oh wait, just don’t even bother responding to anything. I was perusing the comments section and the pages that you follow, and it’s pretty obvious that you are asking totally disingenuous questions and essentially JAQing off. The fact that you point to RFK’s book, Robert Malone, who is not only widely discredited, but an extremist pseudoscience and supplement grifter, probably take the children’s defense fund as gospel… It’s very obvious that you have no desire to learn and have a genuine discussion if this is where you are coming from. Others have ignored your comments since your agenda is clear and I am now going do the same.
oh. okay. That is a logical comment 😂
The very definition of it!
Here is what I wrote:
Senator Cassidy, I will undoubtedly get a canned response to this message, but as a fellow healthcare professional and a former research scientist, I am compelled to write to stop the waste of money and travesty of having a known pseudoscience non-scientist, non-medical professional, and vaccine denier David Geier explore a so-called link of vaccines to autism that has been debunked through massive and multiple well designed studies involving millions of participants.
Both David and his father Mark Geier have been sanctioned by the Maryland medical board, Mark lost his license for gross misconduct, and David is not even a physician, he has a bachelors in biology and was sanctioned for practicing medicine without a license. They are also both known for falsifying data in the past with so-called studies that manipulated data to show vaccine harm. They are the antithesis to science and true scientific discovery and research, going in with an already predetermined conclusion and working backwards to get the result that they want. This is unethical and dangerous.
You approved RFK Junior with conditions. Well, this is a test for you, the appointment of David Geier to this research position with zero qualifications and huge conflicts of interest is a danger to public health, not just to your Louisiana constituents, but to the general public. For once, just do the right thing and oppose this appointment. Start a hearing. Investigate. Do something. This is not a partisan issue. This is about the public health of all Americans.
It was electronic, I wrote it literally right after the appointment of Geier and it was based on that. Here was the canned response:
Thank you for your recent letter regarding President Trump’s Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) nominee, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. The HHS Secretary is responsible for overseeing America’s health care infrastructure, and I voted to confirm Secretary Kennedy on February 13th, 2025.
As a doctor and chairman of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, I took this decision very seriously. We both believe that ultra-processed foods, chronic illness, and obesity pose serious threats to American public health and that the National Institutes of Health must be reformed. I look forward to working closely with Secretary Kennedy to address these issues and make America healthy again.
Before the confirmation vote, I spoke with Secretary Kennedy and the White House multiple times over the weekend, including the morning of the vote in the Senate Finance Committee. We had in-depth conversations about the medical literature and the science behind the safety of vaccines. Secretary Kennedy acknowledged the need to protect the public health benefit of vaccination. He has also committed that he would work within the current vaccine approval and safety monitoring systems and not establish parallel systems, and he will maintain the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices without changes. He committed that the HELP Committee Chair, whether it’s me or someone else, may choose a representative on any board or commission formed to review vaccine safety.
Secretary Kennedy and the administration committed that he and I will have an unprecedently close collaborative working relationship if he was confirmed. We will meet or speak multiple times a month. Secretary Kennedy has asked for my input into hiring decisions at HHS, beyond Senate-confirmed positions. This collaboration will allow us to work well together and therefore be more effective.
These commitments, and my expectation that we can have a great relationship to make America healthy again, is the basis of my support. He is the Secretary, but I believe he will also be a partner in working for this end.
The constitutional responsibility of advice and consent on presidential nominees is one of the most important functions of the Senate. Please know that I will keep your thoughts in mind as I work with Secretary Kennedy to implement a pro-American health agenda.
I will continue to represent the views of my state and do so through hearing from constituents like you. Please continue to reach out, either by phone or by email, when you have another question or concern. You can reach my office in Washington DC at 202-224-5824 or submit an email at https://www.cassidy.senate.gov/contact.
“He committed that the HELP Committee Chair, whether it’s me or someone else, may choose a representative on any board or commission formed to review vaccine safety.”
This reflects a classic square one fallacy—the assumption that established scientific consensus requires revalidation simply to appease political pressure. Vaccine safety has already been thoroughly evaluated by independent, multidisciplinary experts. To frame this as an open question is to erode trust in evidence-based medicine
I am pretty sure that Paul Offit has been asked numerous times by many people including Kennedy to have a discussion and he declined.
Dr. Offit, thank you for all you have done and are continuing to do for America’s most precious resource during your career. I had a child who had to be hospitalized with rotavirus before the vaccine existed and am glad that, thanks to you, my grandchildren will never have to suffer that. I believe that RFK jr is the most dangerous man in America and hope and pray that Senator Cassidy will listen to you and the other physicians who are sounding the same alarm. I heard you on a podcast some time ago saying that you had a telephone interview with RFK jr. some years ago and that afterward he lied about several things the two of you had discussed. If I remember correctly you taped the interview…is there any way you could make that interview public?
Read about here:
https://pauloffit.substack.com/p/my-conversation-with-robert-f-kennedy
Thank you….this is what I heard Offit say on the podcast, but for some reason thought that HE had taped it. I wish Jr. could be persuaded to to release this tape, if he did indeed tape it. Which, sadly, is probably a very large “if.”
RFK taped it ,he claims. Dr Offitt said release it.
What makes you believe that he is the most dangerous man in America?
Barb Homeier, MD.
Thank you for writing this much needed testament to the value of vaccines and the upsetting falsehoods of RFK Jr's statements. As a pediatrician, I am horrified and incredibly saddened by what is currently happening and what will happen in the future with regard to vaccine preventable diseases! Thank you for being our voice!!
To be clear, RFK Jr. has never told anyone to not get a vaccine. He clearly says that everyone is entitled to vaccines as long as they receive proper informed consent. Have you read his book "Vax-Unvax Let The Science Speak"?
Right and he is moving the goal post to what proper informed consent means because he is creating all these false claims that vaccines injure people much more than science has shown over the last decades. He's making crap up.
have you ever watched the documentary “Vaxxed, Vaxxed 2 or Vaxxed 3? can be found at the Children’s health defense website. if you have children i would hope you truly subscribe to this website for true information , incredible podcasts by doctors and parents. Also - you can check the CDC’s own website VAERS (vaccine adverse events reporting system) which will show you about the injured. another great documentary is The Unseen Crisis.- about the people who were injured in the covid clinical trials.
I am truly sorry you feel this way- do you have children? Did you receive proper informed consent by your doctor when giving your children vaccines?
Thank you for speaking, standing, and working for everyone’s health!
If Dr Offit has done so much for our health, then why do we have a chronic disease health crisis? What has he done other than promote vaccines, pharmaceutical drugs, and medical interventions?
Two years ago I was appalled to find a copy of a book claiming that the COVID vaccine had killed hundreds of otherwise young healthy individuals, foreward by RFK JR. , in my small rural town public library. For the first time ever, I filed a request for the director to review the book for its appropriateness in the collection. I had done some research and found that the reviewers at Science Feedback indeed debunked the claim in the book. I didn’t think it was appropriate for the library to be offering disinformation. The interim director sent me a scolding letter in response, attempting to educate me about the importance of intellectual freedom and diversity, of providing a variety of viewpoints. Oh boy! I discussed with many community members, including the former library director of more than 25 years, and she suggested that I donate a book to the collection that would offer a counter to this book full of lies. I chose Dr. Offit’s book, Vaccinated. I never received acknowledgement or thanks for the donation but I did check and make sure it was added to the collection. It sits there in the stacks right next to Dowd’s Cause Unknown.
Thanks for your efforts!
Thank you!!
I’m going to make an assumption that you are a female based on your name. Regardless of your gender you should be outraged that RFK Jr has caused the defunding of important women’s health studies which have been crucial to our long overdue understanding of health issues specific to females, apparently so that he can waste money on poorly designed “studies” to prove his erroneous belief that vaccines cause autism. This despite the many studies with good design that have proven they do not. Designing a study to prove your confirmed belief is not only unethical and wasteful, it’s the antithesis of the scientific process.
Have you read Kennedy's book "Vax-Unvax Let The Science Speak" by chance? Great book
No I haven’t and I’m not going to because when I search his name at Science Feedback there are way too many reviews of his statements that indicate they are false or misleading. I have no jnterest in reading anything more he has written as he cannot be trusted to tell the truth or interpret scientific studies correctly and honestly when they don’t align with his belief system.
Well, we know from the two unvaccinated kids who have recently died of measles as well as all those who suffered and died prior to vaccines being available, that vaccines can and do protect against severe infection. Graveyards are full of children who didn’t survive viral illnesses pre-vaccines.
exactly, science is always evolving.
Unfortunately you want it to evolve backwards.
i wonder who owns “science Feedback?”
https://science.feedback.org/about/
That is too bad. You should be more open minded and hear both sides to the story
Julie, there is no story. There are not two sides. It’s science. It’s the scientific process, which RFK Jr clearly either doesn’t understand or doesn’t value or he’s just lying. Science is always evolving, correcting mistaken ideas with the gold standard randomized controlled double blind studies whenever ethical to do so. That’s why we are always replicating experiments to see if hypothesis and conclusions hold up. Scientists are objective. They have hypotheses but not beliefs they are trying to manipulate data to prove. I will never understand how people can’t wrap their heads around this.
Except that the vaccine industry is NOT doing gold standard science! The result is millions of parents screaming about vax injury to their children!
In most cases it would be unethical to do randomized double blind controlled studies on children. I’m sure you can understand that. It would mean purposely exposing some children (placebo group) to a pathogen that could potentially make them very ill or even kill them or injure them for life (think polio just for one), without the protection that the control group gets (vaccine).
I know that's exactly what they say! But whose ethics"? Only theirs! They are not testing in some huge outbreak where there would be a great risk to the controls, & there are many people who could serve, who would be glad NOT to be vaccinated.
It should be plain to see that this method of testing OBSCURES side effects of the tested product. Then, only 4 or 5-day observation like for the Hep-B vax.! How is it "ethical" to release barely tested products, coerce people to use them, & then gaslight those people when they report injury!
Are you a scientist that regularly directs and implements studies?
Do you know the usual span of time where a person would get a reaction to a vaccine better than a scientist? Do you absolutely know that they haven't also done long -term studies on people?
They tested during a huge outbreak of covid but this still wasn't good enough for half of you.
This is fact not opinion. How about you tell me about your medical background, all the peer-reviewed studies that you have published and implemented? No, you read a book..
hi Mollie. Yes. I do read a lot of books. You do not have to be a rocket scientist or write peer reviewed papers to do research and understand what is happening in this world. Although you should actually subscribe to Dr. Peter McCullough, a very well known cardiologist (American) who has written over 700 peer reviewed papers
Thanks for bringing real information to us.
A brilliant letter and right on point. How the Senate could have confirmed this anti vaccine fraud in the first place should be grounds for removal from office. And you didn’t even have to mention H5N1 which is very scary and clearly infects all kinds of birds and animals of which we could be next.
If we had continued on the path we were on nothing would have changed regarding our chronic disease, health crisis.
Exactly nothing would have changed and now it's going to be much worse.
Listen I'm all about trying to look at the chemicals in our food and water. It's the vaccines and cutting resources for more studies that he needs to back off of.
Everything here is 100% correct except I would have called Kennedy a lying, heartless sack of sh*t over a disinsformer. Cassidy has no power here. Only Trump can remove Wormbrain and sadly I do not see that happening. But thank you for doing your best Dr. Offit, unlike our medical organizations (AMA, AAP, ACOG, AAFP) who are too chickensh*t to call for Kennedy's termination.
As I recall JD Vance assured Sen Cassidy that he would monitor RFK. Maybe someone can get to Vance ( his mother is a nurse ?)
Cassidy assured everyone at the hearings (and America) that HE would be "working very closely" with Bobby and MEETING with him WEEKLY.
It's on video, towards the end of one of the two days - likely the second.
For those who watched the other HELP committee hearings for Bhaatacharya and Makary (and part of Jr.'s), Cassidy asked pointed and relevant questions and pressed them for committed answers but the evasiveness and dodging was telling of the future of MAHA's true intent. Other HELP committee Senators' had obviously already planned to vote party line. (except McConnell) Cassidy needs support from other Senators or Representatives to consider change.
And he needs to stop being more worried about his next Senate race over his Hippocratic Oath.
Yes!
There seems to be a lot of chickenshit going around in healthcare, generally speaking of course. . . . .
Pun intended I think. 😀
Thank you for continuing to provide constructive science-based health information to the public. I’ve followed your science outreach work since I first got involved with Sciam blogs.
Offit’s science hasn’t done anything to end our chronic disease, health crisis. He promotes vaccines, pharmaceutical drugs, and medical interventions as the best way towards optimal health. It doesn’t seem to be working.
Actually it does
You said the same thing over and over again in multiple comments and you're wrong in each one.
As a fellow pediatrician, I am in full agreement with your letter. Sadly, Kennedy’s confirmation was advanced for political expediency without understanding the repercussions that would occur. As the AAP did not come out forcefully against Kennedy’s confirmation for the sake of remaining nonpartisan, I called Sen. Cassidy’s office daily to ask him to consider his oath as a physician before that of a Senator and put the welfare of children first….it was for naught. Hopefully he can redeem himself in the upcoming hearings.
AAP has been worthless for true vaccine advocacy.
Thank you for your efforts, Dr. Mayer.
Very needed letter. Many thanks. Let us know how/if Cassidy responds....
I hope they make it easier!! My cousins daughter is disabled from the HPV vaccine and the process is ridiculous!!! And I am sure you know about the neurologist who proved in court his daughter got autism from a vaccine and won in court. But the government wants to hide that.
The neurologist (Dr Poling) did NOT prove his daughter Hannah got autism from a vaccine.
It was deemed likely that vaccines triggered a flare of her underlying mitochondrial disorder, which manifested as an encephalopathy (which had autistic-like features).
That’s a risk kids with mito disorders face every time they get something that can cause oxidative stress, such as infections (Hannah also had an ear infection).
1) how do you know your daughter was "diabled from the HPV vaccine?" What is her disability and what is the incidence of that disability in HPV vaccinated kids? 2) you are flat wrong about the autism claim. AND a jury does not decide science, scientists do!!
"My cousins daughter is disabled from the HPV vaccine:"
So you say.
"and the process is ridiculous!!! "
Ah....so not accepted - at least yet - as a vaccine injury.
"And I am sure you know about the neurologist who proved in court his daughter got autism from a vaccine and won in court."
Yes, some of us do, but apparently you don't because you have it all wrong. But I see Mike S has already corrected you.
"But the government wants to hide that"
Yes, of course, that's why we know the details. But maybe they are hiding it selectively from those who they know will lie about it anyway.
Would you call yourself a vaccine injury denier? Have you read all the vaccine package inserts?
Yes, the inserts are full of horrors. But these people will declare that the listed side effects "never happen". Hardly worth talking to some people.
Yes they do not want to have civil discourse and deny vaccine injuries or label them rare.
"Would you call yourself a vaccine injury denier? Have you read all the vaccine package inserts?"
Would you call yourself an "argument by package insert" idiot? Because THAT is what you are, you stupid uneducated infanticidal maniac and child killer. Do you also use the VAERS database for the purpose for which it specifically says is NOT appropriate. Of course you do, because you are a stupid uneducated infanticidal maniac and child killer
With your insults you have proven that you are not wanting to engage in civil discourse. You are choosing to be divisive and disrespectful.
I DO DISRESPECT FOOLS WHO SPREAD DEADLY DISINFORMATION.
And it's not a matter of not willing to have a civil discourse, it's a matter of not willing to have any discourse with an uneducated fool who is using long debunked false arguments in favour of an utterly failed hypothesis because they don't have a goddamn clue how science works.
You have no idea what the information in a package insert represents, just as you almost certainly have no idea what the VAERS database is for. You also don't want to be educated regarding them. All you are interested in is using anything that you have been fooled into thinking favours your unsupportable conclusion regarding vaccinations.
YOU CAN HELP SAVE LIVES - INSTEAD OF HELPING TO END THEM! - BY ACTUALLY LEARNING SOME SCIENCE INSTEAD OF FAKING IT.
Of course, if it happened to one person out of millions they have to put it in there for disclosure and I'm glad they do. But it does not mean it happens to multiple people. Yes, it is a risk but the benefits far outweigh the risks.
Please share with us what type of disability.
Thanks.
Yeah, whatever. All my cousin's kids and my kids and everyone else's kids I know did just FINE with the HPV vaccine, so my anecdotes top yours
What is Dr Offit doing to acknowledge vaccine injuries and to help those who have been affected? It appears he is more concerned about protecting the pharmaceutical industry and vaccine manufacturers.
Answer of course, is NOTHING. Never will because it would undermine the vax program.
And a vaccination program should not be undermined with fake science, anecdotes and conspiracy theories with an underlying self serving agenda).
So much of the "science" promoted by the vaccine industry FAKE! That is the problem!
Maybe you should bother to look the matter before you just repeat the same old accepted line. RFK Jr. is correct in trying to improve testing.
Greatly appreciate that you continue to make the case against RFK,Jr. in a measured way with facts, data, and science. It’s a very compelling narrative.
He did not provide facts and data.
Actually he did
He did but you only believe in what a book and some vlogs say.
JFK jr. has fallen far, far away from the family tree. He is not a doctor, he is not informed about scientific evidence, and he is not the right person for the job he has been given. He needs to be removed from this role. His presence is a hindrance to the practice of good medicine and could result in unnecessary deaths or permanent damage to individuals in our great country. He is a very real danger to the proper use of medical care in the United States.
Thanks Dr Offitt. I doubt you have any time to read your substack comments, but you are a real Hero!
I understand that this is the only way you believe you can be persuasive and appreciate your engagement in this way. Unfortunately, every R vote is solely a loyalty test to the King. If Cassidy actually based his vote on the logic and evidentiary strength of your argument, he wouldn't have voted to confirm. Cassidy may undertake some perfunctory pushback at a hearing, but in the end the loyalty test is dispositive.