Jessica Biel Joins the Ranks of Anti-Vaxxers

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., an environmental activist whose recent work has focused increasingly on baseless allegations that vaccines are unsafe, unexpectedly appeared at the California State Assembly with actress Jessica Biel.  The duo had come to lobby against SB 276, a California state bill that would limit medical exemptions from vaccinations without approval from a state public health officer.

Although rumors circulated in 2015 that Biel and her husband, Justin Timberlake, did not plan to vaccinate their kids, Biel had never publicly commented on the vaccination debate. But Kennedy confirmed that the actress (whose past controversial opinions include insisting it is a “struggle” to get roles because she is too sexy) was “upset about [the vaccination bill] because of its particular cruelty.”

By coming out as an anti-vaxxer, Biel joins the dubious ranks of nut-job celebrities such as Jenny McCarthy, Jenna Elfman, Jim Carrey, Alicia Silverstone, Charlie Sheen, Kirstie Alley, Selma Blair, Rob Schneider, Danny Masterson, Esai Morales, and Juliette Lewis. 

Biel and Kennedy’s primary concern with the bill stems from what they deem bureaucratic “red tape,” which they believe would force kids to receive vaccinations.   But vaccination advocates say that the bill will have minimal impact on those with valid reasons for exemption, citing medical authorities like the bill’s prominent co-sponsors: the California Medical Association and the American Academy of Pediatrics, California.

“The children who need medical exemptions will not have a problem getting them if SB 276 becomes law,” said Leah Russin, executive director of Vaccinate California, another co-sponsor of the bill. “People who are on immuno-suppressant drugs will not have a problem getting a medical exemption—and in fact, the people who truly need medical exemptions desperately need everyone else to be vaccinated. That’s why they support this bill. Medical advice should be coming from medical professionals.”

“A Hollywood celebrity and the head of an environmental organization should not have credibility on an issue about how to regulate the medical profession, when an overwhelming number of medical professionals support this bill,” Russin said. “It’s the Jenny McCarthy show all over again.”