1 00:00:01,480 --> 00:00:05,240 Speaker 1: Hello, everyone, Welcome to Wellness Unmasks with doctor Nicole Saffire 2 00:00:05,360 --> 00:00:08,639 Speaker 1: and this is your weekly rundown. We have to break 3 00:00:08,680 --> 00:00:12,039 Speaker 1: down what went on this week at the Senate Finance 4 00:00:12,080 --> 00:00:16,440 Speaker 1: Committee hearing with HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Junior. Let 5 00:00:16,440 --> 00:00:19,280 Speaker 1: me tell you, my phone has been blowing up ever since. 6 00:00:19,760 --> 00:00:23,680 Speaker 1: It was tense, it was confrontational, and yes, he actually 7 00:00:23,720 --> 00:00:28,120 Speaker 1: called the former CDC director Susan Monarez a liar. Yeah, 8 00:00:28,200 --> 00:00:33,040 Speaker 1: he actually did that, not once, not twice, three separate times. 9 00:00:33,520 --> 00:00:36,520 Speaker 1: So he took his seat before the Finance Committee and listen, 10 00:00:36,600 --> 00:00:39,040 Speaker 1: we knew it was going to be tense. We knew 11 00:00:39,040 --> 00:00:40,920 Speaker 1: Democrats were going to come out. They were going to 12 00:00:41,000 --> 00:00:45,160 Speaker 1: question him about the changes to the COVID vaccine recommendations, 13 00:00:45,840 --> 00:00:48,919 Speaker 1: talking about some of the big beautiful bill and what 14 00:00:49,000 --> 00:00:54,000 Speaker 1: it means for rural healthcare, Medicare, Medicaid. My big thing 15 00:00:54,120 --> 00:00:57,680 Speaker 1: was I wanted to see what Senator doctor, doctor, Senator 16 00:00:57,760 --> 00:01:01,400 Speaker 1: Cassidy had to say because he wasn't sure if he 17 00:01:01,560 --> 00:01:05,320 Speaker 1: was going to vote for Kennedy in his nomination. Ultimately 18 00:01:05,360 --> 00:01:10,000 Speaker 1: he did, but he expressed some pretty serious concerns and 19 00:01:10,160 --> 00:01:14,360 Speaker 1: he's now been expressing some disappointment publicly, whether in media 20 00:01:14,600 --> 00:01:17,319 Speaker 1: or on social media about some of the things that 21 00:01:17,360 --> 00:01:19,840 Speaker 1: are happening. I was kind of curious to hear if 22 00:01:19,880 --> 00:01:24,520 Speaker 1: he was going to say that he regretted voting for Kennedy. 23 00:01:24,680 --> 00:01:29,960 Speaker 1: It didn't get that tense. However, Senator Cassidy did talk 24 00:01:30,000 --> 00:01:34,319 Speaker 1: about the fact that despite RFK Junior saying he wasn't 25 00:01:34,360 --> 00:01:38,160 Speaker 1: going to change access to COVID vaccines, that's essentially what 26 00:01:38,240 --> 00:01:40,760 Speaker 1: has happened now. There was a lot of back and 27 00:01:40,800 --> 00:01:44,959 Speaker 1: forth between the senators and RK Junior. The senators were saying, well, 28 00:01:44,959 --> 00:01:48,440 Speaker 1: you're taking away access to the COVID vaccines and RFK Juniors, no, 29 00:01:48,480 --> 00:01:50,200 Speaker 1: why I'm not, And it was back and forth, back 30 00:01:50,240 --> 00:01:54,720 Speaker 1: and forth. Ultimately, they were all telling the truth. They 31 00:01:54,720 --> 00:01:59,920 Speaker 1: were just arguing semantics. By changing the ASIP, the CDC recommendation, 32 00:02:00,320 --> 00:02:05,280 Speaker 1: and also changing what the FDA recommends for these vaccines. 33 00:02:05,800 --> 00:02:10,320 Speaker 1: You know, you look at your CBS pharmacies, your insurance formulas, 34 00:02:10,480 --> 00:02:15,360 Speaker 1: Larry's if you are taking away the generalized recommendations that 35 00:02:15,520 --> 00:02:19,920 Speaker 1: CBS may not offer vaccines for just about anyone. They 36 00:02:19,960 --> 00:02:23,200 Speaker 1: don't necessarily want the liability of giving the vaccines off 37 00:02:23,280 --> 00:02:26,880 Speaker 1: label use, so RFK Junior is saying, well, you have 38 00:02:26,919 --> 00:02:28,440 Speaker 1: to go to your doctor and they have to write 39 00:02:28,480 --> 00:02:31,920 Speaker 1: a prescription for it. Well, in the past, people could 40 00:02:31,919 --> 00:02:33,760 Speaker 1: just go and get the vaccine without having to see 41 00:02:33,800 --> 00:02:36,840 Speaker 1: their doctor first. So in one sense, the senators are 42 00:02:36,880 --> 00:02:40,079 Speaker 1: saying you're restricting access. They're right because it's just going 43 00:02:40,120 --> 00:02:42,760 Speaker 1: to change. But RFK Junior is also right when he's 44 00:02:42,760 --> 00:02:45,680 Speaker 1: saying anybody who wants a vaccine can get it. I mean, 45 00:02:45,680 --> 00:02:48,080 Speaker 1: I guess that's true within reason, in the sense that 46 00:02:48,200 --> 00:02:50,440 Speaker 1: you still would have to go to the doctor. If 47 00:02:50,480 --> 00:02:53,200 Speaker 1: your doctor agrees you need the vaccine, then you can 48 00:02:53,240 --> 00:02:55,760 Speaker 1: go and get the vaccine. So again they were both 49 00:02:56,000 --> 00:03:01,280 Speaker 1: telling the truth. We're arguing some mantics there, but I'll 50 00:03:01,280 --> 00:03:05,240 Speaker 1: be honestly, one of the moments that kind of had 51 00:03:05,280 --> 00:03:07,680 Speaker 1: me like WHOA shaking my head, like what is happening 52 00:03:07,680 --> 00:03:11,160 Speaker 1: here right now? When RK Junior was asked about the 53 00:03:11,200 --> 00:03:15,399 Speaker 1: firing of Susan Monrez, who she was just went through 54 00:03:15,440 --> 00:03:19,160 Speaker 1: her committee hearing to be instilled as the CDC director. 55 00:03:19,639 --> 00:03:22,799 Speaker 1: He fired her, and there's a lot of controversy as 56 00:03:22,800 --> 00:03:27,200 Speaker 1: to why that happened. Just moments before the Senate committee hearing, 57 00:03:28,040 --> 00:03:31,840 Speaker 1: Susan Monraz put out an opinion piece that essentially said 58 00:03:32,000 --> 00:03:35,400 Speaker 1: RFK Junior wanted me to rubber stamp anything that his 59 00:03:35,560 --> 00:03:40,640 Speaker 1: newly appointed ASIP committee recommended regarded vaccines. And she pointed 60 00:03:40,640 --> 00:03:44,000 Speaker 1: out how some of the people in RFK Junior's inner 61 00:03:44,000 --> 00:03:47,400 Speaker 1: circle on the committee are known anti vacks, and so 62 00:03:48,040 --> 00:03:50,080 Speaker 1: she said she was not going to rubber stamp it, 63 00:03:50,240 --> 00:03:53,120 Speaker 1: not without looking at the science, looking at the data, 64 00:03:53,640 --> 00:03:56,960 Speaker 1: and she believes what the recommendations are going to be 65 00:03:57,160 --> 00:03:59,520 Speaker 1: is going to be anti science. And she also said 66 00:03:59,520 --> 00:04:02,520 Speaker 1: she thought be illegal, which that was a very interesting 67 00:04:02,560 --> 00:04:09,160 Speaker 1: Buddsword Well, RFK Junior said she's a liar and that 68 00:04:09,560 --> 00:04:13,360 Speaker 1: he never said that he wanted her a rubber stamp it. 69 00:04:13,920 --> 00:04:17,600 Speaker 1: He never said any of these things. And then when 70 00:04:17,800 --> 00:04:22,320 Speaker 1: Senator Elizabeth Warren asked if he actually asked Monarez Monarez, 71 00:04:22,360 --> 00:04:25,560 Speaker 1: the former CDC director now if she was trustworthy, r 72 00:04:25,600 --> 00:04:27,800 Speaker 1: f K Junior said, yeah, he asked her and she 73 00:04:27,960 --> 00:04:30,920 Speaker 1: said no. So I don't want her as an employee, 74 00:04:30,960 --> 00:04:35,159 Speaker 1: so she was fired. I mean, it's like what it 75 00:04:35,200 --> 00:04:38,240 Speaker 1: sounds like. There was a very heated conversation between RFK Jr. 76 00:04:38,360 --> 00:04:41,360 Speaker 1: Susan Monraz. I don't think we know the truth about 77 00:04:41,360 --> 00:04:45,280 Speaker 1: what really happened there. Susan Monrez laid out some very 78 00:04:45,320 --> 00:04:49,599 Speaker 1: serious allegations against RFK Junior. His response is just that 79 00:04:49,640 --> 00:04:52,719 Speaker 1: she's a liar. I don't know where the truth lies there. 80 00:04:52,760 --> 00:04:54,480 Speaker 1: I hope we get some of the truth. I'd love 81 00:04:54,520 --> 00:04:57,240 Speaker 1: to see Susan Monrez under oath at one of these 82 00:04:57,279 --> 00:05:00,520 Speaker 1: hearings as well. It was a pretty wild day, to 83 00:05:00,560 --> 00:05:02,359 Speaker 1: be honest. At the end of the day, though, I 84 00:05:02,360 --> 00:05:06,239 Speaker 1: will tell you I'm very disappointed, disheartened, because I feel 85 00:05:06,240 --> 00:05:08,760 Speaker 1: like we are farther away from unifying our nation when 86 00:05:08,760 --> 00:05:12,000 Speaker 1: it comes to the health of America. I think that 87 00:05:12,720 --> 00:05:17,000 Speaker 1: unfortunately RFK is Maybe there's a great message to make 88 00:05:17,040 --> 00:05:19,760 Speaker 1: America healthy again. Maybe he is getting rid of some 89 00:05:19,800 --> 00:05:22,839 Speaker 1: of the bureaucracy and making things more efficient, and I 90 00:05:22,839 --> 00:05:26,800 Speaker 1: think ultimately the goal is to do things that are 91 00:05:27,080 --> 00:05:30,640 Speaker 1: beneficial to the American people. Huge concern I have is 92 00:05:31,080 --> 00:05:32,960 Speaker 1: that he may not be the right messenger, may not 93 00:05:33,040 --> 00:05:35,640 Speaker 1: be the right person to be telling the people what's 94 00:05:35,680 --> 00:05:39,560 Speaker 1: going on. Because just like there's a Trump derangement syndrome, 95 00:05:39,560 --> 00:05:42,359 Speaker 1: I think there might be an RFK Junior derangement syndrome. 96 00:05:42,440 --> 00:05:44,800 Speaker 1: So no matter what he says, whether it's for the 97 00:05:44,800 --> 00:05:46,960 Speaker 1: good or the bad, people are not going to listen 98 00:05:47,000 --> 00:05:48,800 Speaker 1: and they're going to rebuke what he is saying. So 99 00:05:49,680 --> 00:05:52,880 Speaker 1: I hope that the AHHS can kind of put together 100 00:05:53,040 --> 00:05:58,919 Speaker 1: a more bipartisan, apolitical spokesperson to try and communicate some 101 00:05:59,040 --> 00:06:01,440 Speaker 1: of their message, because I'll tell you what I saw 102 00:06:01,520 --> 00:06:05,479 Speaker 1: from the hearing today. It was nothing but bickering, hyperbole 103 00:06:05,920 --> 00:06:09,919 Speaker 1: back and forth, and certainly was embarrassing as an American 104 00:06:09,920 --> 00:06:13,560 Speaker 1: citizen to watch. But that's it for this week's weekly rundown. 105 00:06:13,680 --> 00:06:16,159 Speaker 1: Thanks for listening to Wellness on Mass on America's number 106 00:06:16,200 --> 00:06:19,920 Speaker 1: one podcast network, iHeart. Follow Wellness on Mass with Doctor Nipple, 107 00:06:19,960 --> 00:06:22,919 Speaker 1: Saffire and start listening on the free iHeartRadio app or 108 00:06:22,920 --> 00:06:25,320 Speaker 1: wherever you get your podcasts, and we'll see you next time.