“We have measles outbreaks every year,” he added. Mr. Kennedy has also said in the past that immunizations against measles and some other infectious diseases are unnecessary and risky.

A growing measles outbreak in Texas, where one unvaccinated child died and nearly 20 others have been hospitalized with serious complications, marks the first major test for U.S. Health Secretary Robert F.

The death, reported on Wednesday, was the first U.S. fatality from the highly contagious disease in a decade. Government data showed a growing outbreak