Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will request that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention develop new guidelines for treating measles with drugs and vitamins, according to an HHS spokesperson.
The move comes after Kennedy was chastised during this year’s record measles outbreaks for misleading people into believing that measles infections are easily treatable and inflating myths about measles vaccines. Vaccination is the only way to prevent the highly infectious disease, which can lead to serious health complications or even death in some cases.
“Secretary Kennedy will be enlisting the entire agency to activate a scientific process to treat a host of diseases, including measles, with single or multiple existing drugs in combination with vitamins and other modalities,” the department’s spokesperson said in a statement to CBS News on Wednesday.
According to the statement, the CDC will collaborate with universities “to develop protocols, conduct testing, and pursue approval for new uses of safe and effective therapeutics that meet the highest scientific standards.”.
While the CDC continues to recommend vaccination “as the most effective way to prevent disease,” the statement acknowledges that some Americans “may choose not to vaccinate.”
“Our commitment is to support all families — regardless of their vaccination status — in reducing the risk of hospitalization, serious complications, and death from measles,” according to a statement.
On Tuesday, Kennedy hinted at the plans, telling reporters that there are “many, many good ways to treat measles, and doctors need to know that and those methods.”
“We are now developing a worksheet for doctors to address the epidemic, to address people who have it, not just with vaccination, but actually with budesonide, clarithromycin, vitamin A, and many, many other treatments that have been shown to be very effective,” Kennedy said in Texas, according to a video published by local television station WFAA.
On Thursday, the CDC issued a fact sheet to doctors treating measles, stating that other treatments “such as antibiotics should be prescribed based on clinical judgement by an individual healthcare provider.”
Budesonide and clarithromycin
For weeks, Kennedy has praised the use of the drugs budesonide and clarithromycin for treating measles, claiming “miraculous and instantaneous recovery” for some patients despite a lack of evidence to support the recommendation.
Kennedy claims to have spoken with two Texas doctors, Dr. Ben Edwards and Dr. Richard Bartlett, who have made anecdotal claims about the drugs’ effectiveness.
Experts have criticized Edwards’ approach to treating children during the outbreak, including his interactions with patients and their families while infected with the highly contagious virus. Bartlett was previously chastised for making the false claim that budesonide was a “silver bullet” for treating COVID-19.
“There is no cure for measles, and it can cause severe complications. The American Academy of Pediatrics, or AAP, stated last month that it is misleading and dangerous to promote the idea that measles can be easily treated with unproven and ineffective therapies such as budesonide and clarithromycin.
Dr. James Campbell, vice chair of the AAP committee that develops recommendations for doctors treating measles and other infectious diseases, told CBS News earlier this year that the drugs can occasionally help hospitals treat severe complications of measles.
While budesonide can reduce lung inflammation and clarithromycin can combat co-infections with other germs, Campbell cautioned that neither were antivirals for fighting the measles virus infection itself. He stated that decisions about the use of these drugs should be left to doctors who are managing measles hospitalizations on an individual basis.
“In 2025, we should not have to treat measles in the U.S. because it is completely preventable, but of course, like all preventable diseases, we do,” Campbell wrote in a recent email.
Vitamin A
Kennedy’s request to the CDC comes just days after the agency increased its warning against overuse of vitamin A, which does not cure measles but can help reduce the risk of severe illness. High doses of vitamin A can be toxic.
“Vitamin A does not prevent measles and should not be used as a substitute for vaccination. Vitamin A may be administered to infants and children in the United States with measles under the supervision of a healthcare provider as part of supportive management, according to updated CDC guidance for doctors released last month.
The agency warned that giving too much vitamin A to children could result in toxicity and damage to the liver, bones, central nervous system, and skin.
According to the agency’s recommendations, doctors should prescribe a total of two doses of vitamin A, with specific doses based on the patient’s age.
This differs from Kennedy’s unfounded recommendation to use cod liver oil to treat measles in children, which the AAP warns can be dangerous.
“It contains a high concentration of vitamin A, far exceeding the daily recommended amount. It can also make children sick if they consume too much. In addition to vitamin A, cod liver oil contains high levels of vitamin D, which can be harmful if children consume more than the recommended daily amount, according to the association.