Trump chooses Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to lead the main US health agency

He president-elect Donald Trump announced Thursday that it has selected Robert F. Kennedy Jr, an environmental activist who has spread misinformation about vaccines, to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, the top US health agency.

Kennedy ran in this year’s presidential election as an independent before dropping out of the race in August and endorsing Trump in exchange for a role in the Republican’s administration.

“The safety and health of all Americans is the most important role of any government,” Trump said in a publication on social networks.

“HHS will play a great role in helping ensure that everyone will be protected from the harmful chemicals, pollutants, pesticides, pharmaceuticals and food additives that have contributed to the overwhelming Health Crisis in this Country,” he added.

HHS oversees the Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Institutes of Health, and the Medicare and Medicaid Services programs, which provide health coverage to the poor, those over 65 and the disabled.

The tens of millions of Medicaid and Medicare enrollees mean that HHS has a budget of $3.09 trillion for fiscal year 2024, representing 22.8% of the US federal budget.

Health priorities

Kennedy has been part of Trump’s transition team and has been reviewing resumes of candidates for top jobs in US health agencies.

In posts on Platform the foods.

Kennedy also suggested that he would dismantle the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which has 18,000 employees and ensures the safety of food, drugs and medical devices, and replace hundreds of employees at the National Institutes of Health.

“If you work for the FDA and are part of this corrupt system, I have two messages for you: 1. Keep your files, and 2. Pack your bags,” he wrote in X weeks ago.

In early November, he said he would recommend removing fluoride from the public water supply, falsely claiming in X that the chemical is associated with bone fractures and cancer.

The American Dental Association says this decades-old intervention reduces cavities by more than 25% in adults and children.

Kennedy has been criticized for making false medical claims, such as that vaccines are linked to autism. He opposed state and federal restrictions imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic and was accused of spreading misinformation about the virus.

He rejects the anti-vaccine label and says he instead wants more rigorous testing of vaccines. However, he chaired Children’s Health Defense, a nonprofit organization focused on anti-vaccine messages.

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