Nov. 14 (UPI) — President-elect Donald Trump on Thursday announced vaccine-skeptic Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is his choice to lead the Department of Health and Human Services.
“I am thrilled to announce Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as the United States Secretary of Health and Human Services,” Trump said in a post on his Truth Social site on Thursday.
“For too long, Americans have been crushed by the industrial food complex and drug companies who have engaged in deception, misinformation and disinformation when it comes to public health,” Trump said.
He said protecting the “safety and health of all Americans is the most important role” of any presidential administration.
“HHS will play a big role in helping ensure that everybody will be protected from harmful chemicals, pollutants, pesticides, pharmaceutical products and food additives that have contributed to the overwhelming health crisis in this country,” Trump said.
Kennedy, 70, will restore federal agencies to the “traditions of gold standard scientific research and beacons of transparency” to end what Trump called a “chronic disease epidemic” in the United States.
Kennedy initially challenged President Joe Biden for the Democratic Party nomination for president during the 2024 primaries but dropped out of that race.
Kennedy briefly ran for the presidency as an independent before ending his candidacy and endorsing Trump.
Trump’s choice of Kennedy to lead HHS comes despite Kennedy being a skeptic of vaccines.
Kennedy also wrote a book accusing former National Institutes of Health Director Anthony Fauci of conspiring with Big Pharma and Bill Gates to convince the public of the effectiveness and need to get COVID-19 vaccinations.
Kennedy has referred to federal regulators as “puppets” of large pharmaceutical companies and said they should be removed from the federal government.
Kennedy is an environmental attorney and founded Children’s Health Defense, which describes itself as an organization that protects and advocates for children’s health.
