Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Testifies at Health and Human Services Secretary Confirmation Hearing

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., President Trump’s nominee to serve as Health and Human Services secretary, testified at his second confirmation hearing – this time before the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee. Physician and Committee Chair Bill Cassidy (R-LA) voiced concerns about Kennedy’s comments on the measles and Hepatitis B vaccine causing autism. When Senator Cassidy asked Kennedy to convince him that he would become a public health advocate and not just churn old information – noting studies that show 1.25 million children studied had no autism associated with the measles vaccine -the nominee responded, “I’m going to be an advocate for strong science” and continued to say, “there are other studies as well, and I’d love to show those to you.” Additional topics discussed included Medicare, prevention of chronic diseases, and drug prices. At the end of the hearing, Ranking Member Bernie Sanders and Kennedy had an exchange on funding from pharmaceutical companies.