Two decades ago, when I was a baby-faced Capitol Hill reporter, Texas Republican Michael Burgess was a relatively new member of Congress, swept in with the post-Clinton wave of Bush conservatives.
Burgess, a physician, was one of several doctors in Congress and quickly became a voice for Republican health policy. Since leaving in 2025, he’s watched the MAHA takeover of health and vaccine policy. And he’s been speaking out about maternal and infant health, vaccine-preventable diseases, autism and other issues — and warning that Republicans are running a political risk by not sticking up for science and policy they once believed in.
Tomorrow at 12:30 p.m. ET, we’ll talk with Dr. Burgess about vaccine politics in the US and how it split the Republican Party, and what he thinks can be done about it. Join us on YouTube, and you can set a calendar hold for a reminder when we get started.
I’ll be joined by our own MAHA expert, Senior Reporter Max Bayer, who has been covering the vaccine rollback happening at US government health agencies, its effects on research into new vaccines, and the people and companies involved.
This is going to be an important, informative show, and I hope you’ll join us.
— Drew Armstrong, Executive Editor