Robert F Kennedy Jr’s quest to head the nation’s largest healthcare agency cleared a major hurdle Tuesday, as the Senate Finance Committee voted along party lines to advance his nomination.
Despite intense debate about the viability of Kennedy’s nomination to be Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), his effort moved forward after senator Bill Cassidy (R-LA), a physician and vocal proponent of childhood vaccines, joined 13 other Republicans in voting to move Kennedy’s nomination to consideration by the full Senate.
In hearings leading up to Tuesday’s vote, Cassidy had expressed concerns about Kennedy’s past criticisms of vaccine safety. According to an analysis by the Washington Post, Kennedy has linked childhood vaccines to autism at least 36 times and implied clinicians who administer them were guilty of “ criminal medical malpractice.” Children’s Health Defense, a non-profit group he helped create, has been called an “anti-vaccine juggernaut”.
Cassidy in a post on social media said he had been reassured in private conversations with Kennedy and the White House. “With the serious commitments I’ve received from the administration and the opportunity to make progress on the issues we agree on like healthy foods and a pro-American agenda, I will vote yes,” Cassidy posted on X.
In public remarks regarding his vote, Cassidy said that Kennedy, if confirmed, promised to:
- Meet or speak with Cassidy “multiple times a month”;
- Work within current vaccine approval and safety monitoring systems and not establish parallel systems;
- Maintain the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices recommendations without changes;
- Not remove statements on CDC websites pointing out that vaccines do not cause autism;
- HHS will provide a 30-day notice to the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions if HHS plans to change federal vaccine safety monitoring programs and the committee will have the option to call a review hearing.
An open letter from physicians opposing Kennedy’s nomination has garnered more than 20,300 signatures. “RFK Jr. is not only unqualified to lead this essential agency–he is actively dangerous. We urge the Senate to protect and defend our patients’ access to quality health care by rejecting his appointment,” the letter states.
Kennedy has received support from some physicians; however, as the Associated Press reported Monday, several of the more than 800 “medical professionals” who signed a letter to the Senate in favor of his nomination have had their medical licenses revoked or suspended for their treatment of patients during the COVID-19 pandemic and other issues. Many of the signatories on the document, from MAHA Action — short for Make America Healthy Again — are not physicians, the news agency noted.
Physicians took to social media to express their feelings on the ‘yes’ vote by Cassidy. Andy Pasternak, MD, MS, a former president of the Nevada State Medical Association, wrote on X: “As a family physician who has advocated for vaccines for two decades, I am gobsmacked that any physician could vote for RFK Jr. I guess your party is more important than your profession.”
“Sen Cassidy voted to advance RFK, Jr’s nomination for HHS Sec out of committee, placing party over country, and party over people. He knows better. Shameful,” wrote Jonathan Reiner, MD, a professor of medicine and an interventional cardiologist at the GW School of Medicine and Health Sciences in Washington, DC.
Raghu Venugopal, MD, an emergency room physician in Canada, responded to Dr Reiner saying: “I’m sorry for your patients and your nation Dr. Reiner but as we well know, the spread of vaccine-preventable illnesses knows no boundary and is a regional threat affecting us in Canada as well.”
David Gorski, MD, PhD, a professor of surgery and oncology at Wayne State University of Medicine, wrote: “Welp. Predictably, Sen. Cassidy caved, putting his political career before the health of Americans. Totally expected. His ‘doubts’ were all performative, to give a false impression that he might vote for public health and against RFK Jr. He was *never* going to vote no.”
In a statement before the vote, the American College of Physicians (ACP) said “As with any new administration, ACP will be looking for areas of agreement where we may be able to make progress. We’re communicating our policies to the new administration and will continue to advocate, to advance and achieve our policy priorities and defend against rolling back any progress that has been made,” the group said.
“We remain concerned about the spread of medical misinformation and disinformation and strongly support the use of the best-possible evidence to guide medical care and health policy. We strongly believe that all patients need to be able to access necessary health care without being subject to political interference or biases that create health disparities.”
All 13 Democrats on the committee voted against Kennedy, whose nomination advances to the full Senate for a vote, possibly later this week. If he receives no support from Democrats and the two independents in the Senate, Kennedy can afford to lose no more than three Republicans to win confirmation.
If confirmed, Kennedy will take charge of a nearly $2 trillion agency with more than 80,000 workers who oversee the nation’s health policy infrastructure. Under his watch will be the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the US Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the National Institutes of Health.
On Tuesday, President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social in support of his nominee by questioning the safety of vaccines: “20 years ago, Autism in children was 1 in 10,000. NOW IT’S 1 in 34. WOW! Something’s really wrong. We need BOBBY!!! Thank You! DJT” (The true incidence of autism in the United States is 1 in 36, according to government statistics. No reliable evidence supports a connection between vaccination and the development of the neurologic disorder).
Leigha Schewe
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