U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has announced he’s chosen Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (aka RFK Jr.) to lead the U.S. health department.
Kennedy ran for President in this year’s election, before suspending his campaign and endorsing Trump.
U.S. President-elect Trump said Kennedy will help “Make America Great and Health Again”. Kennedy still needs to be confirmed by the Senate before he can be appointed to the role.
Kennedy is a former environmental lawyer and has led the U.S. anti-vaccine movement since the 2000s.
Kennedys
The Kennedy family has a long history with the Democratic party.
RFK Jr.’s uncle was President John F. Kennedy.
His father, Robert, was campaigning to become President when he was assassinated in 1968.
Before politics, Kennedy sued several major companies for pollution during his work as an environmental lawyer.
Robert F Kennedy Jr.
Kennedy is one of the most prominent voices of the anti-vaccine movement in the U.S.
He chairs the Children’s Health Defense, an anti-vaccine organisation, and has said he believes a range of conditions from food allergies to autism are tied to childhood vaccinations.
Before Kennedy suspended his election campaign, his website said he supported “voluntary vaccines”, and raised questions over COVID-19 vaccine mandates.
Announcement
This week, Trump has announced his picks to lead federal Government departments. These people will form his Cabinet.
In a social media post, Trump confirmed he wanted Kennedy to be appointed as Secretary of Health and Human Services.
“Kennedy will restore these Agencies to the traditions of Gold Standard Scientific Research, and beacons of transparency,” Trump said. In the same post, he said medicine companies have been engaging in “deception, misinformation, and disinformation”.
Kennedy welcomed the news, promising to work with the agency’s 80,000 staff and “stop the revolving door between industry and government”.
During his campaign, he promised to reduce the rates of “autoimmune disease, diabetes, ADD and ADHD, autism, obesity, asthma [and] food allergies” among children in the U.S.
He’s also pledged to remove fluoride from drinking water, comparing it to “industrial waste”. Fluoride is a mineral used to slow down tooth decay. According to the not-for-profit Cleveland Clinic medical centre, small amounts are safe to consume.
Reaction
Public health experts have warned Kennedy’s appointment would “pose incredible risks”.
Former head of the Centres for Disease Control Dr Richard Besser told The New York Times that Kennedy is “part of the problem and cannot be part of the solution”. The CDC is one of the agencies in Kennedy’s portfolio.
Kennedy will need to be confirmed by the Senate after Trump becomes President at the end of January. Trump’s party, the Republicans, have a majority in the Senate.
