Measles cases in the United States have hit a 30-year high, with 1,288 new cases reported in just the first six months of the year. Welcome to Donald Trump‘s America.
The disease was previously declared eliminated by the CDC in 2000, which meant it was no longer spreading within the United States, and any new case reported came from someone who had traveled abroad and discovered they were carrying the disease upon returning. Before then, measles cases in 1992 peaked at over 2,000, but vaccines soon became widely prevalent in the US, pushing those numbers down.
A lot has changed since then. The pandemic and the subsequent COVID-19 vaccine rollout led to widespread vaccine hesitancy. Conspiracy theories on the Joe Rogan Experience were one thing, but now Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is in charge of healthcare, and his stance on vaccines has been spotty at best — and there’s a long list of worsts to mention. As measles cases were slowly creeping up in Texas, he at least reconsidered some of his vaccine conspiracy theories, but the damage was already done.
According to UPI, the measles vaccine was officially administered for the first time in 1971. Before then, the CDC estimated that 3 to 4 million Americans caught the disease annually. Now, with the CDC facing increasing public distrust, it’s hard to see a world where RFK Jr. takes these numbers seriously.
RFK Jr., however, previously claimed that these rising numbers were of no real concern to him. Meanwhile, the CDC has used the opportunity to urge people to seek out the vaccine, assuring the public that it remains the surest way to slow down the rising cases. In its statement on the causes of the outbreak, the CDC explained, “Measles risk is higher in U.S. communities with low vaccination rates in areas with active measles outbreaks or with close social and/or geographic linkages to areas with active measles outbreaks.”
Over on X, reactions were filled with predictable disappointment. One user claimed that the CDC is about to receive a letter trying to prevent them from announcing measles numbers. Another user took a more introspective approach, questioning what freedom truly means in America, sarcastically wondering whether “true freedom” now means embracing policies that could ensure people get a disease modern medicine eradicated decades ago. Another user summed it up with biting sarcasm: “Make Measles Great Again!”
They about to get a letter telling them to stop saying that
— Garco (@garcoxgang) July 9, 2025
The US is the greatest country in the world and the land of the free.
— Daniel Ahmad (@ZhugeEX) July 9, 2025
True freedom is when the government embraces policies that allow me to get a disease that was declared eradicated more than two decades ago.
Make Measles Great Again!!!
— Jason Diamos(@Mrmosman66) July 9, 2025
RFK Jr. is not against all forms of “medicine”, however. Reports indicate he has been courting conspiracy theorists who push bleach as a supposed cure-all for diseases like HIV, autism, and cancer. The Trump administration’s record on healthcare is shaping up to be one of the most concerning in modern American history. The problem with healthcare mismanagement is not just its critical importance, but how gradual its impact can be. The benefits of vaccines rely heavily on herd immunity, and encouraging people to reject that in favor of nonsense like ingesting bleach might not show its full consequences immediately, like a botched flood response in Texas, but when the consequences arrive, the path back to normalcy could take decades.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has yet to respond to these rising measles numbers as of this moment.
