One common criticism of the Trump administration is that officials never stand up to or critique President Donald Trump. But recently, a loyal Trump admin official seemingly felt like he had no choice but to admit that Trump was incorrect about something. During a recent Face the Nation interview, Dr. Mehmet Oz was confronted over claims Trump previously made about the MMR vaccine, which is a combination shot that protects against measles, mumps, and rubella.
Dr. Oz eventually admitted that what Trump said about the vaccine wasn’t actually true. Not that he seemed particularly eager to do so.
In case you missed it, Trump called the vaccine “lethal.”
Q: I think I heard you say the MMR vaccine is quite lethal. Is there any evidence of that?
— Acyn (@Acyn) August 10, 2026
Trump: No. I’ve heard some people say that. I've heard when you put them together, they can be explosive. pic.twitter.com/w2N7X6jDZr
“Three separate vaccinations taken at separate times,” he said. “Together there could be a possibility they’re quite lethal, and separately it looks like they are not at all lethal but just very effective. So the MMR we want to have separate visits, separate times.”
Trump did not provide any evidence for his claims about the vaccine, which has been used since 1971 (per Johns Hopkins).
Dr. Oz was questioned about this claim.
During a recent Face the Nation interview, Margaret Brennan repeatedly questioned Dr. Oz about Trump’s claim before he eventually admitted that the MMR vaccine is not “lethal.” Dr. Oz currently serves as the head of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
First, Dr. Oz answered by speaking about vaccines in general. He focused on parents making their own choices and avoided commenting on the MMR vaccine specifically, even though that’s what Brennan had asked him to do. “We want patients to get the treatments that their doctors are recommending to them,” he said. “We also want parents to have the autonomy to decide what their kids receive.”
But she pushed back on this, reminding him that she was asking about “the MMR vaccine specifically.” Dr. Oz claimed he was talking about “all” vaccines, but Brennan interjected and reminded Dr. Oz that his boss described the MMR vaccine as “lethal.”
Dr. Oz continued to focus on the idea that parents should make their own choices about their children’s vaccines.
He said that what Trump wants is for parents to follow their doctor’s recommendations “as long as they have a choice in the matter.” Which, of course, was not answering the question that Brennan actually asked.
She pointed out that Trump claimed children should get three separate shots against measles, mumps, and rubella, which is something that’s not currently offered in the United States. “Currently it’s only offered as a single shot,” Brennan said. “The president called that single shot lethal. Do you want to clarify that?”
Finally, after all of that pushing, Dr. Oz admitted that what his boss said about the MMR vaccine was not factual. “The MMR vaccine is not a lethal vaccine,” he admitted.
Earlier this month, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. urged parents to get their children vaccinated against measles amid a surge in infections. “Parents should get their children vaccinated for measles,” he said. “A measles vaccine is effective. It stops measles in about 97% of the cases. People should get vaccinated.”
