STAT+: In RFK Jr.'s emails to his niece, a trail of vaccine criticism

In private emails to his niece Robert F. Kennedy Jr. questioned the safety of vaccines that are considered cornerstones of modern medicine. Here is an examination of some of the most notable exchanges.

Kennedy’s emails to Kerry Kennedy Meltzer are in bold. Context from STAT is in italics.

The exchanges begin on Dec. 21, 2020, when RFK Jr. asks Meltzer to review a video of Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) and Pierre Kory, the president of the Front Line COVID-19 Critical Care Alliance, arguing for the use of ivermectin as a treatment for Covid. Ivermectin would later fail to show a benefit as a Covid treatment in clinical trials; Kory had his medical licenses revoked in 2023, according to The Washington Post. Meltzer responds that the studies involved seem too small, and that she doesn’t understand how a drug against tapeworms would prove effective. The version here is from an additional email sent by Kennedy on January 2, 2021, when he added links to his sources.

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