WASHINGTON (AP) — Robert F. Kennedy Jr. , an anti-vaccine activist and environmentalist, for years gained a loyal and fierce following with his biting condemnations of how the nation’s public health agencies do business.
And that's put him on a direct collision course with some of the 80,000 scientists, researchers, doctors and other officials who work for the Department of Health and Human Services, especially with President-elect Donald Trump tapping him to head the agency . If confirmed, Kennedy will control the world's largest public health agency, and its $1.7 trillion budget.
The agency's reach is massive. It provides health insurance for nearly half of the country — poor, disabled and older Americans. It oversees research of vaccines, diseases and cures.
It regulates the medications found in medicine cabinets and inspects the foods that end up in cupboards. A look at Kennedy's comments about some of the agencies that fall within the HHS arena, and how he has said he plans to shake them up: — “FDA’s war on public health is about to end,” he wrote on X in late October. “If you work for the FDA and are part of this corrupt system, I have two messages for you: 1.
Preserve your records, and 2. Pack your bags.” The FDA’s 18,000 staffers include career scientists, researchers, and inspectors responsible for the safety and effectiveness of prescription drugs, vaccines and other medical products.
The agency also has broad oversight of a swath of consumer goo.
