McConnell
Defends Polio Vaccine, an Apparent Warning to Kennedy
“Efforts to
undermine public confidence in proven cures are not just uninformed — they’re
dangerous,” said the Republican leader, who is a polio survivor.
The
Republican leader Mitch McConnell contracted polio at age 2.
Sheryl Gay
Stolberg
By Sheryl
Gay Stolberg
Dec. 13,
2024
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/12/13/us/politics/mcconnell-polio-vaccine-rfk-jr.html
Senator
Mitch McConnell, the Republican leader and a survivor of polio, issued a
pointed statement in support of the polio vaccine on Friday, hours after The
New York Times reported that the lawyer for Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has
petitioned federal regulators to withdraw the vaccine from the market.
Without
naming Mr. Kennedy, Mr. McConnell suggested that the petition could jeopardize
his confirmation to be health secretary in the incoming Trump administration.
“Efforts to
undermine public confidence in proven cures are not just uninformed — they’re
dangerous,” said Mr. McConnell, who is stepping down as his party’s Senate
leader next month but could remain a pivotal vote in Mr. Kennedy’s
confirmation. “Anyone seeking the Senate’s consent to serve in the incoming
administration would do well to steer clear of even the appearance of
association with such efforts.”
Mr. Kennedy
has said he does not want to take away anyone’s vaccines. His lawyer, Aaron
Siri, filed the petition in 2022 on behalf of the Informed Consent Action
Network, a nonprofit run by Mr. Kennedy’s former communications director. Mr.
Siri is advising Mr. Kennedy as he vets candidates for the Department of Health
and Human Services.
Mr.
McConnell, 82, of Kentucky, contracted polio as a child, more than a decade
before the vaccine became widely available. When his left leg was paralyzed,
his mother took him for treatment in Warm Springs, Ga., at the same treatment
center frequented by another famous polio survivor, President Franklin D.
Roosevelt.
Although Mr.
McConnell eventually recovered, the lingering effects of the disease followed
him into adulthood, leaving him with a wobbly, uneven gait. He has spoken often
of the experience.
“From the
age of 2, normal life without paralysis was only possible for me because of the
miraculous combination of modern medicine and a mother’s love. But for millions
who came after me, the real miracle was the saving power of the polio vaccine,”
Mr. McConnell said.
Sheryl Gay
Stolberg covers health policy for The Times from Washington. A former
congressional and White House correspondent, she focuses on the intersection of
health policy and politics. More about Sheryl Gay Stolberg
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