Amanda Seitz and Hannah Norman, KFF Health News
Video by Hannah Norman
One yr after taking charge of the nation’s well being division, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. hasn’t held true to lots of the promises 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 Department of Health and Human Services, solely after making quite a few private and non-private ensures about how he would deal with vaccine funding and proposals as secretary.
Here’s 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 had been vaccinated.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) grilled Kennedy in regards to the cash he’s made within the non-public sector from lawsuits towards vaccine makers and accused him of planning to revenue from potential future insurance policies making it simpler to sue.
“Kennedy can kill off access to vaccines and make millions of dollars while he does it,” Warren mentioned throughout the Senate Finance Committee listening to. “Kids might die, but Robert Kennedy can keep cashing in.”
Warren’s assertion prompted an assurance by Kennedy.
“Senator, I support vaccines,” he mentioned. “I support the childhood schedule. I will do that.”
Days later, Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, declared Kennedy had pledged to take care of current vaccine suggestions if confirmed. 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 will maintain the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices’ recommendations without changes,” 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.
Last month, the CDC eliminated its common suggestions for kids to obtain seven immunizations, these defending towards respiratory syncytial virus, meningococcal illness, flu, covid, hepatitis A, hepatitis B, and rotavirus. The transfer adopted a memorandum from the White House calling on the CDC to cull the schedule.
Now, these vaccines, which researchers estimate have prevented hundreds of deaths and tens of millions of sicknesses, are really useful by the CDC just for youngsters at high-risk of great sickness or after session between docs and fogeys.
In response to questions on Kennedy’s actions on vaccines over the previous yr, HHS spokesperson Andrew Nixon mentioned the secretary “continues to follow through on his commitments” to Cassidy.
“As part of those commitments, HHS accepted Chairman Cassidy’s numerous recommendations for key roles at the agency, retained particular language on the CDC website, and adopted ACIP recommendations,” Nixon added. “Secretary Kennedy talks to the chairman at a regular 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 had 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 “Yes” when Cassidy requested him instantly: “Do you commit that you will not work to impound, divert, or otherwise reduce any funding appropriated by Congress for the purpose of vaccination programs?”
A federal decide later ordered HHS to distribute the cash.
The National Institutes of Health, a part of HHS, additionally yanked dozens of analysis grants supporting research of vaccine hesitancy final yr. Kennedy, in the meantime, ordered the cancellation of a half-billion {dollars}’ value of mRNA vaccine analysis in August.
A Discredited Theory 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.
But late final yr, new statements sprung up on the identical webpage, baselessly casting doubt on vaccine security. “The claim ‘vaccines do not cause autism’ is not an evidence-based claim because studies have not ruled out the possibility that infant vaccines cause autism,” the page on autism now misleadingly reads.
The webpage additionally states that the general public has largely ignored research displaying vaccines do trigger autism.
That is fake. 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 world 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 Health News is a nationwide newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about well being points and is likely one of the core working applications at KFF—an impartial supply of well being coverage analysis, polling, and journalism. Learn extra about KFF.
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