AILSA CHANG, HOST:
OK, we want to turn now to focus a bit more on that key vote from Republican Senator Bill Cassidy of Louisiana. As we know, Cassidy is a medical doctor, and he raised deep concerns last week about Kennedy's past comments on vaccines. Cassidy said that he's worried about the role those comments could play in parents choosing whether to vaccinate their children.
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BILL CASSIDY: I just had a friend text me - two children died in an intensive care unit in a Baton Rouge hospital from vaccine-preventable diseases this past month. So my concern is that if there's any false note, any undermining of a mama's trust in vaccines, another person will die from a vaccine-preventable disease. Now, you've got a megaphone.
CHANG: Well, a group of 100 physicians wrote Senator Bill Cassidy an open letter asking him to denounce Kennedy's nomination, arguing that Kennedy's position on vaccines makes him unfit to lead HHS. Jennifer Herricks is the founder of Louisiana Families for Vaccines, the group that organized that letter. She joins us now. Welcome.
JENNIFER HERRICKS: Thank you for having me.
CHANG: Well, thank you for being with us. So let me ask you - how are you feeling about Senator Cassidy's committee vote today, given the concerns he had previously expressed as a physician, not just as a lawmaker?
HERRICKS: Yeah. Disappointed doesn't seem to really be the right word but feeling at a loss for words right now but definitely beyond disappointed.
CHANG: Well, real quick, can you just briefly tell us a little bit about your organization's work, Louisiana Families for Vaccines?
HERRICKS: Sure. I would love to. So Louisiana Families for Vaccines formed in 2022. We saw, you know, there were a lot of bills coming up at the state level in regards to vaccine policy that were quite concerning. And really, when we were watching, you know, hearings happening at the state level, we didn't see the voice of everyday families really represented. And we know that the majority of families in Louisiana and in other states choose to vaccinate. And so, you know, we decided to organize and to help those families get their voices heard. In 2022, in the state of Louisiana, there were 39 anti-vaccine bills that went to the state legislature. And, you know, we had a lot of success that year. We were able to stop 38 of those in the legislature, and one was vetoed by the governor.
CHANG: Let me ask you - just to go back to Senator Cassidy - because he explained his committee vote on the floor of the Senate today, saying that, you know, he plans to check in with Kennedy several times a month if he is confirmed to be secretary of HHS, that he will hold HHS accountable in his own position as chair of the Senate Health Committee. Do any of those personal reassurances alleviate any of your concerns about Kennedy being at the helm of that department?
HERRICKS: No, they don't. Mr. Kennedy has a history of saying one thing and turning around and doing another. He also, you know, denies things that he has said and done in the past that have been harmful and that have caused direct harm to families here in the United States and in other countries. Samoa is a great example.
CHANG: Well, as a vaccine advocate such as yourself, how do you see your work changing or reshaping under the second Trump administration and under a secretary of HHS, Kennedy?
HERRICKS: Yeah. I think, you know, unfortunately, we may be heading towards a time where we see some of these diseases that, you know, people of my generation didn't ever - never saw, never had to experience. And I think it's going to be more important for families and for parents to really start to speak up and to advocate for themselves and for their children now so more than ever.
CHANG: Jennifer Herricks is the founder of Louisiana Families for Vaccines. Thank you very much for joining us.
HERRICKS: Thanks for having me. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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