NEWS: Senator Blunt Rochester Grills U.S. Surgeon General Nominee Dr. Casey Means on Vaccine Science

Click here to watch Senator Blunt Rochester's full remarks and exchange with Dr. Means.

Washington, DC - U.S. Senator Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.), a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, today participated in a hearing with U.S. Surgeon General nominee Dr. Casey Means. Senator Blunt Rochester pressed Dr. Means on the effectiveness of vaccines and the need for the highest ethical standards in vaccine studies.

On February 3, Senator Blunt Rochester strongly defended vaccine science in a hearing with Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Senator Blunt Rochester called into question the consideration of Denmark as a peer nation when it comes to vaccine policy and found bipartisan support in doing so. Additionally, on January 28, Senator Blunt Rochester joined HELP Committee Ranking Member Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) in leading 18 of their colleagues to demand answers from Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. on the recent overhaul of the child and adolescent immunization schedule. The Senators highlighted the lack of evidence supporting the changes and called for the immediate reinstatement of the previous, science-backed vaccine schedule.

Senator Blunt Rochester's full remarks and exchange with Dr. Means can be found here. A key excerpt is below:

On the Hepatitis B Vaccine

Senator Blunt Rochester: "If you are confirmed, you know that you will be America's top doctor. And as such, people will be looking to you for scientifically accurate health guidance. So, I wanted to… understand your views on vaccines and the science supporting Secretary Kennedy's vaccine vision…Previously you stated that the Hepatitis B vaccine, giving it to a baby born to Hepatitis B negative parents is absolute insanity. I think you did an analogy to it being criminal. I was really pleased to hear you say so strongly here today that vaccines save lives, that you support vaccination use for children. My first question is, if a mother is Hepatitis B positive, is providing the vaccine at birth the most effective way to prevent transmission to the baby?"

Dr. Means: "I believe certainly that is the most effective way. Again, I would just say, obviously the patient should talk to their doctor, but yes, that's a pretty clear case where certainly that would have a huge impact."

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Senator Lisa Blunt Rochester represents Delaware in the United States Senate where she serves on the Committees on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs; Commerce, Science, and Transportation; Environment and Public Works; and Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.