IOWA
RFK Jr., Miller-Meeks tout Presidential Fitness Test as measles surge
Norah JudsonDes Moines Register
Aug. 18, 2026, 7:08 a.m. CT
NEWTON, Iowa — U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. traveled to Iowa to celebrate the return of the Presidential Physical Fitness Test
He joined U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks on Monday, Aug. 17, by at the Newton YMCA, where they spoke to summer campers about the program being phased back in to children’s physical education through partnerships with the YMCA and the Boys and Girls Clubs of America
“It’s wonderful to be a part of this,” Miller-Meeks said as she introduced Kennedy. “It’s wonderful to have Secretary Kennedy here, who is helping our nation to have healthier kids, because they lead to healthier adults.”
The children’s fitness event comes as Kennedy’s controversial vaccine stances roil America and measles cases surge
Kennedy stood behind a podium and spoke to a sea of campers seated cross-legged before him on the hard gymnasium floor
“When we lose our physical fitness, we lose our competitive edge in the world, and ultimately, our leadership,” Kennedy said. “The obesity rate for children is up to 20% … 77% of American youth cannot qualify for military service.”
He remarked upon the determination of the administration to return America to holding that competitive edge through the implementation — and re-implementation — of rigorous nutrition and fitness standards, concluding: “We need to get (American youth) active and outdoors.”
In his address, Kennedy claimed the fitness test was started by his uncle, John F. Kennedy, in 1961. While the JFK was part of the push to roll the test out into America’s classrooms, it was Dwight D. Eisenhower who initiated the program in 1956
After their remarks, Kennedy and Miller-Meeks were given a demonstration of the test by the gathered campers, some more enthused to show off their athletic prowess than others
The pair, accompanied by George Sorensen, the CEO of the Newton YMCA, strolled about the gymnasium and observed, cheering the kids on as they ran, planked and completed sets of push ups and sit ups. When the kids were finished, they were each awarded silver medallions from Kennedy
The real highlight of the afternoon, however, was Miller-Meeks’ display of her own athleticism. The congresswoman slipped off her heels, shrugged off her blazer and cartwheeled across the gymnasium floor to the cheers of children
Things left unsaid
After the kids had filed out, Kennedy and Miller-Meeks took questions from the press, but only as they related to the Presidential Fitness Test, screen time legislation and the mental health crisis among America’s youth
Neither mentioned Executive Order 14420 that President Donald Trump signed Aug. 10, which laid out controversial changes to childhood vaccine requirements
One change, the splitting up of the MMR vaccine into three separate single-disease vaccines, targeting measles, mumps and rubella respectively, has some medical officials concerned that the once-eradicated diseases will see a significant rise should this go into effect
An Aug. 17 press release from the Centers for Disease Control reported a record high in kindergarteners seeking vaccine exemptions. The number of requested exemptions jumped from 3.6 percent for the 2024-25 school year to 4.2 percent for the 2025-26 school year
The data came right on the heels of the news that the United States has hit a 35-year record high in reported measles cases, with 2,566 confirmed cases as of Aug. 13
While Kennedy mentioned the rising measles cases during his opening remarks, he did not elaborate. Measles cases are on the rise in Iowa, too, with the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services confirming 12 cases in the state as of Aug. 16, up from nine cases in 2025
What about adults?
While Kennedy and Miller-Meeks were inside, a handful of protestors gathered outside the YMCA under the sweltering summer sun. All women, and all angry
“Vaccines save lives,” read one sign. One sign, which had been hammered into the ground, had the words “Honk if you hate RFK Jr,” scrawled across it — and some motorists did
Karla Vancise, mother and caregiver to a 41-year-old blind, disabled son, held up a sign emblazoned with hand written text: “Guardians who provide care do more than ‘write checks.’ Ask me!”
She was there to protest the Medicaid cuts in the One Big Beautiful Bill that would slash her pay, leaving her unable to care for her son, and RFK’s criticism of the Medicaid funded programs that allow relatives of disabled individuals to get paid for their caregiving
Without the proper aid to facilitate her son’s care, Vancise said, he would have to leave the handicap accessible apartment he calls home and move into a group home
“To rip him out of his home after 17 years,” Vancise said, “That will kill him.”
Norah Judson is a reporter for the Register. Reach her at njudson@gannett.com
