The importance of nominating and confirming a qualified expert to a position that provides oversight of the nation’s most important health care-related agencies cannot be overstated.
As physicians, our ability to deliver optimal care to our patients relies upon public confidence in proven science and evidence-based medical information from trusted sources. The American health care system needs a leader who upholds and builds upon the
trusted reputation of government health agencies whose decades of work have saved millions of lives. We must leverage this sizeable platform and role to embrace established science and champion medical and scientific advancement, debunk disproven
conspiracy theories, and mitigate the spread of dangerous misinformation about such topics as the safety and efficacy of vaccines. Mr. Kennedy falls alarmingly short of these critical qualifications.
Speaking on behalf of all patients, we urge the Senate to vet any potential candidate for confirmation in a thorough and nonpartisan manner and consider the short- and long-term effects of a decision that could have life and death consequences.
-Hugh Taylor, MD, President, Massachusetts Medical Society
