Trump and Kennedy at an October rally in Duluth, Ga. Photo: Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
With the suspense long gone and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. confirmed as HHS secretary, the attention shifts to his agenda — and the assurances he gave some senators to get their votes.
Here are a few areas we're watching as he takes the helm of the sprawling department.
Commitments on vaccines
To get confirmed, the prominent vaccine critic made a number of pledges on vaccines, most notably to win the backing of Senate HELP Chair Bill Cassidy.
- Kennedy committed to "maintain" CDC Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices recommendations "without changes" and to work within "current vaccine approval and safety monitoring systems."
- Kennedy also told Cassidy he would give the HELP Committee a 30-day notice if HHS sought to change vaccine safety monitoring programs, and that he would speak with him "multiple times a month."
- The question now is whether any of that can be enforced, or whether Kennedy will seek loopholes or other ways to undermine or walk back vaccinations.
- Asked Thursday how he will hold Kennedy to his word, Cassidy told Axios: "Chairs of committees have certain oversight abilities."
- Sen. Mitch McConnell, a polio survivor, was the lone GOP senator to vote no. "As he takes office, I sincerely hope Mr. Kennedy will choose not to sow further doubt and division but to restore trust in our public health institutions," McConnell said.
Medicare and Medicaid policy
Much of the attention has been on Kennedy's vaccine views. But his designs for the giant federal health programs have not been fleshed out.
- During his confirmation hearings, Kennedy fumbled some basics about the programs, incorrectly saying that Medicaid is fully paid for by the federal government, and confusing the different parts of Medicare.
- The expectation is that next-level-down officials at CMS with more conventional Republican views may have considerable discretion running the programs.
- One major question is how energetically the administration will pursue the next phase of Medicare drug price negotiations under the Inflation Reduction Act.
- President Trump is "absolutely committed to negotiating lower drug prices," Kennedy said at his hearing, though he declined to specify how he would carry that out.
Healthy foods
Kennedy can stir the pot with major vaccine moves, or he can stick to another of his focus areas: promoting healthy foods and fighting chronic disease, both of which have much more bipartisan support.
- If Kennedy focuses on areas like regulating food additives, he is sure to encounter far less resistance from Democrats and, possibly, even some support.
- "Instead of focusing on who covers our exorbitant health care costs, we need to reduce these costs by directing our attention to prevention and keeping people healthy," Sen. Lisa Murkowski, a swing vote, said in announcing her support.
- "This is the appeal of RFK, and many Alaskans have shared that view with me," she added.
