Who is Robert F Kennedy Jr ? Once an anti-vaccine activist, now Trump's pick for health secretary
PTC News Desk: US President-elect Donald Trump has nominated Robert F Kennedy to be the next health secretary who will be leading 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 (HHS). 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 in a post on X.
Kennedy has been appointed as chief of the department and will be overseeing everything from drugs to food safety and vaccine, medical research and the social safety net programs Medicare and Medicaid. His views on public health have often termed as dangerous by health officials.
Kennedy, Donald Trump said, would “end the Chronic Disease epidemic" and “Make America Great and Healthy Again!”. Soon after the announcement, Kennedy took to his social media and expressed his gratitude for the position and wrote, “Thank you @realDonaldTrump for your leadership and courage. I'm committed to advancing your vision to Make America Healthy Again. We have a generational opportunity to bring together the greatest minds in science, medicine, industry, and government to put an end to the chronic disease epidemic.”
“Together we will clean up corruption, stop the revolving door between industry and government, and return our health agencies to their rich tradition of gold-standard, evidence-based science. I will provide Americans with transparency and access to all the data so they can make informed choices for themselves and their families,” he added.
Robert F Kennedy has been one of the significant anti-vaccine activist who strongly vouched for now debunked claims vaccines causing autism and other health issues. Hailing from one of the most influential political background, he had earlier challenged Joe Biden for the Democratic nomination last year, and later ran as in independent in the presidential nomination race.
- With inputs from agencies
