Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was sworn in as secretary of well being and human companies within the Oval Workplace on Feb. 13, 2025.
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Andrew Harnik/Getty Photos
One 12 months after taking cost of the nation’s well being division, Well being and Human Companies Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. hasn’t held true to lots of the guarantees he made whereas interesting to U.S. senators involved in regards to the longtime anti-vaccine activist’s plans for the nation’s care.
Kennedy squeaked by way of a slim Senate vote to be confirmed as head of the Division of Well being and Human Companies solely after making plenty of private and non-private ensures about how he would deal with vaccine funding and proposals as secretary.
Here is a have a look at a number of the guarantees Kennedy made throughout his affirmation course of.
The childhood vaccine schedule
In two hearings in January 2025, Kennedy repeatedly assured senators that he supported childhood vaccines, noting that each one his youngsters have been vaccinated.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., grilled Kennedy in regards to the cash he has made within the non-public sector from lawsuits in opposition to vaccine makers and accused him of planning to revenue from potential future insurance policies making it simpler to sue.
“Kennedy can kill off entry to vaccines and make hundreds of thousands of {dollars} whereas he does it,” Warren mentioned through the Senate Finance Committee listening to. “Youngsters may die, however Robert Kennedy can hold cashing in.”
Warren’s assertion prompted an assurance by Kennedy.
“Senator, I assist vaccines,” he mentioned. “I assist the childhood schedule. I’ll do this.”
Days later, Sen. Invoice Cassidy of Louisiana, a Republican and chairman of the Senate Well being, Training, Labor and Pensions Committee, declared that Kennedy had pledged to keep up present vaccine suggestions if confirmed.
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Cassidy, a doctor specializing in liver illnesses and a vocal supporter of vaccination, had questioned Kennedy sharply in a listening to about his views on photographs.
“If confirmed, he’ll keep the Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices’ suggestions with out adjustments,” Cassidy mentioned throughout a speech on the Senate flooring explaining his vote for Kennedy.
A number of months after he was confirmed, Kennedy fired all of the incumbent members of the vaccine advisory panel, referred to as ACIP, and appointed new members, together with a number of who, like him, oppose some vaccines. The panel’s suggestions quickly modified drastically.
Final month, the CDC eliminated its common suggestions for kids to obtain seven immunizations: these defending in opposition to respiratory syncytial virus, meningococcal illness, flu, COVID-19, hepatitis A, hepatitis B and rotavirus. The transfer adopted a memorandum from the White Home calling on the CDC to cull the schedule.
Now, these vaccines, which researchers estimate have prevented 1000’s of deaths and hundreds of thousands of sicknesses, are beneficial by the CDC just for youngsters at excessive threat of significant sickness or after session between docs and oldsters.
In response to questions on Kennedy’s actions on vaccines over the previous 12 months, HHS spokesperson Andrew Nixon mentioned the secretary “continues to observe by way of on his commitments” to Cassidy.
“As a part of these commitments, HHS accepted Chairman Cassidy’s quite a few suggestions for key roles on the company, retained explicit language on the CDC web site, and adopted ACIP suggestions,” Nixon added. “Secretary Kennedy talks to the chairman at an everyday clip.”
Cassidy and his workplace have repeatedly rebuffed questions on whether or not Kennedy, since turning into secretary, has damaged the commitments he made to the senator.
Vaccine funding axed
Weeks after Kennedy took over the federal well being division, the CDC pulled again $11 billion in COVID-era grants that native well being departments have been utilizing to fund vaccination applications, amongst different initiatives.
That occurred after Kennedy pledged throughout his affirmation hearings to not undermine vaccine funding. Kennedy replied, “Sure” when Cassidy requested him straight: “Do you commit that you’ll not work to impound, divert, or in any other case cut back any funding appropriated by Congress for the aim of vaccination applications?”
A federal decide later ordered HHS to distribute the cash.
The Nationwide Institutes of Well being, a part of HHS, additionally yanked dozens of analysis grants supporting research of vaccine hesitancy final 12 months. Kennedy, in the meantime, ordered the cancellation of a half-billion {dollars}’ price of mRNA vaccine analysis in August.
A discredited idea about autism
Cassidy mentioned in his flooring speech that he obtained a assure from Kennedy that the CDC’s web site wouldn’t take away statements explaining that vaccines don’t trigger autism.
Technically, Kennedy saved his promise to not take away the statements. The web site nonetheless says that vaccines don’t trigger autism.
However late final 12 months, new statements sprang up on the identical webpage, baselessly casting doubt on vaccine security. “The declare ‘vaccines don’t trigger autism’ just isn’t an evidence-based declare as a result of research haven’t dominated out the likelihood that toddler vaccines trigger autism,” the web page on autism now misleadingly reads.
The webpage additionally states that the general public has largely ignored research displaying that vaccines do trigger autism. That’s false. Over a long time of analysis, scientific research have repeatedly concluded that there is no such thing as a hyperlink between vaccines and autism.
A controversial 1998 examine that captured international consideration did hyperlink the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine to autism. It was retracted for being fraudulent — although not till a decade after it was revealed, throughout which there have been sharp declines in U.S. vaccination charges.
KFF Well being Information is a nationwide newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about well being points and is likely one of the core working applications at KFF.
