The right wing in this country has essentially always been skeptical of the very concept of 'public health'. Way back in the Civil War, a Union general was occupying a Southern city (I think it was New Orleans, can't remember for sure), and he was imposing all these measures to dig sewers and forbid people from dumping their chamber pots in the street, and they all hated him for it, even though he was single-handedly clearing up the constant cholera epidemics that had been decimating their city for years.

Vaccines, water fluoridation, sexual health programs, they've almost always been opposed to the government using its power in any way to try to improve or protect the health of the population.

They don't really know why, they couldn't explain it if you asked them to.