Sanders releases trove of internal HHS emails showing RFK Jr. pressured CDC over vaccine messaging

Sen. Bernie Sanders released internal HHS emails on Thursday that appear to document HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. pressuring the CDC over vaccine messaging and directing the agency's vaccine advisory panel to restrict vaccine access. The Hill's reporting is from a major national outlet with a named byline and covers a newsworthy document release, though the article description provided is truncated and does not show the full scope of evidence or Kennedy's responses to the allegations. Independent coverage from The Guardian and The New Republic corroborates the core claim with additional specifics—namely that Kennedy testified to Congress that a 2019 trip to Samoa had nothing to do with vaccines, but newly released emails from colleagues suggest the trip was vaccine-related, potentially contradicting his Senate testimony. The AP and NBC News independently reported on a related matter: a COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness study that Kennedy's CDC reportedly blocked from publication, which was subsequently published in an outside journal, lending credence to the broader pattern of vaccine-related editorial control. Critical readers should monitor whether Kennedy provides a formal response to these email releases, and whether congressional committees launch investigations into potential false testimony given his statements to the Senate.