2026-09-16 15:30:33 / 路透社
华盛顿，9月16日路透电 — 美国参议院卫生委员会共和党主席周三在为唐纳德·特朗普总统提名的三名高级卫生官员举行的确认听证会上，将宾夕法尼亚州近期的麻疹死亡事件归咎于特朗普政府的疫苗政策。
作为该委员会主席的路易斯安那州参议员比尔·卡西迪是一名医生，他在听证会上发表了批评性的开场发言。当前美国正经历35年来最严重的麻疹疫情。
卡西迪表示：“据报道，宾夕法尼亚州已有四人死亡”，他将此归咎于他所说的错误信息和误导性政策。
此次听证会将审议克里斯·克伦普出任卫生与公众服务部副部长、妮可·萨皮尔医生出任卫生局局长，以及蒂莫西·韦斯特莱克医生出任药物滥用和精神健康服务管理局局长。卡西迪的这番言论为听证会定下了尖锐的基调。他表示，美国需要的卫生领导人“应基于科学而非政治或意识形态做出决策”。
卡西迪将最尖锐的警告对准了萨皮尔，他将卫生局局长职位描述为美国民众寻求医疗指导的“国家医生”，并表示他想听听她将如何恢复公众对公共卫生的信心。
他的 broader critique put the nominees on notice over policies set by their prospective boss, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
卡西迪的整体批评也让提名人选注意到他们未来上司、卫生部长小罗伯特·F·肯尼迪的政策立场。
卡西迪表示，疫苗“绝大多数安全有效，不会导致自闭症”，并批评一项拆分儿童疫苗接种计划的行政令，称该计划将要求儿童接种更多疫苗，反而降低安全性。
尽管卡西迪在知情的情况下投下决定性一票确认了卫生部长的任命，但他对肯尼迪全面改革美国疫苗政策的举动越来越持批评态度。
卡西迪在5月份的共和党初选中落败，此前特朗普因他在2021年特朗普第二次弹劾审判中投下定罪票而对他进行报复，此后他变得更加公开地反抗。
“顺便说一句，疾控中心显然正在制定麻疹死亡的定义。有人说，几十年来我们都不必为此费心，因为没人死于麻疹，而现在却有人死于麻疹。这将是本届政府极其糟糕的遗产，”卡西迪说道。
卡西迪对克伦普给予了赞扬，并称赞他曾担任卫生与公众服务部首席顾问和医疗保险中心主任。他称赞韦斯特莱克帮助通过了《遏制芬太尼法案》，并表示期待与他一道推进心理健康改革。
萨皮尔是一名放射科医生，也曾是福克斯新闻撰稿人，是特朗普提名的第三任卫生局局长人选。此前健康博主凯西·米恩斯的提名在参议院受阻，特朗普也因资质问题撤回了珍妮特·内谢瓦特医生的提名。自2025年1月以来，美国一直没有正式任命的卫生局局长。
克伦普曾是健康科技高管，他负责了卫生与公众服务部的大部分日常工作，从医疗保险主任一路晋升至该机构肯尼迪手下的首席顾问。财政委员会已于周二为他举行了正式的提名听证会。周三的听证会属于礼节性听证。
此次听证会旨在解决政府内部卫生职位人员空缺积压的问题。参议院已于8月5日确认埃丽卡·施瓦茨医生出任美国疾病控制与预防中心主任。
美国食品药品监督管理局目前仍没有正式任命的负责人。特朗普上月提名白宫政策助手海蒂·奥弗顿出任该局局长。
本文由艾哈迈德·阿布勒埃宁报道，比尔·伯克罗特编辑
Republican senator faults Trump vaccine policy for US measles deaths as panel weighs health nominees
2026-09-16 15:30:33 / Reuters
WASHINGTON, Sept 16 (Reuters) – The Republican chairman of the U.S. Senate health committee on Wednesday blamed the Trump administration’s approach to vaccines for recent measles deaths in Pennsylvania during a confirmation hearing for three of President Donald Trump’s top health nominees.
Senator Bill Cassidy, a Louisiana physician who chairs the panel, delivered the critical opening statement to the hearing as the nation grapples with its worst measles outbreak in more than 35 years.
“We have four people in Pennsylvania reportedly dead” because of what he called misinformation and misguided policies, Cassidy said.
The remarks set a combative tone as the committee weighs Chris Klomp for deputy secretary of Health and Human Services, Dr. Nicole Saphier for surgeon general, and Dr. Timothy Westlake to lead the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Cassidy said the country needs health leaders “who make decisions based on science, not politics or ideology.”
Cassidy directed his sharpest warning at Saphier, describing the surgeon general post as that of “the nation’s doctor” who Americans look to for medical guidance, and said he wanted to hear how she would restore confidence in public health.
His broader critique put the nominees on notice over policies set by their prospective boss, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Cassidy said vaccines are “overwhelmingly safe and effective, and they do not cause autism,” and criticized an executive order breaking up the childhood vaccine schedule, saying it would require children to get more shots and make them less safe.
Cassidy has been increasingly critical of Kennedy’s efforts to overhaul U.S. vaccine policy despite casting the deciding vote confirming the health secretary to the post with full knowledge of Kennedy’s history of public anti-vaccine activism.
Cassidy lost his Republican primary in May, after Trump targeted him for retribution over his 2021 vote to convict at Trump’s second impeachment trial, and has since grown more openly defiant.
“By the way, CDC apparently is working on a definition of death by measles. Someone said we haven’t had to work on that for decades because no one has died from measles, and now we have people dying from measles. That’s going to be a terrible legacy for this administration,” Cassidy said.
Cassidy praised Klomp and cited his experience as chief counselor at HHS and director of the Center for Medicare. He credited Westlake with helping pass his Halt Fentanyl Act and said he looked forward to working with him on mental health reforms.
Saphier, a radiologist and former Fox News contributor, is Trump’s third pick for surgeon general, after wellness influencer Casey Means stalled in the Senate and Trump withdrew Dr. Janette Nesheiwat’s nomination over questions about her credentials. The U.S. has had no surgeon general since January 2025.
Klomp, a former health tech executive, has run much of HHS day-to-day, rising from Medicare director to chief counselor for Kennedy at the agency. The Finance Committee held his formal nomination hearing on Tuesday. Wednesday’s session is a courtesy hearing.
The hearing is addressing the backlog of health vacancies across the administration. The Senate confirmed Dr. Erica Schwartz to lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on August 5.
The FDA remains without a confirmed leader. Trump nominated White House policy aide Heidi Overton to lead the agency last month.
Reporting by Ahmed Aboulenein Editing by Bill Berkrot
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