RFK Jr. would also have the power, along with the FDA commissioner, to slow down or hamper the process by which new vaccines are evaluated, approved, and recommended. That could discourage pharmaceutical companies from developing new or reformulated vaccines.

Senate Republicans are signaling that they are open to Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s nomination to lead the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) despite his long-standing support of abortion rights and concerns emanating from anti-abortion voices about his selection.

If confirmed as head of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), prominent vaccine skeptic Robert F. Kennedy Jr. wouldn’t have the authority to ban vaccines — but health experts

He can pick a strident abortion opponent like Roger Severino, who wrote the Project 2025 chapter on HHS, as his number two.

In one of his most controversial Cabinet picks, President-elect Donald Trump said he would nominate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to lead the Department of Health and Human Services. Here, we summarize our past work fact-checking Kennedy's claims about health and science.

Massachusetts Health and Human Services Secretary Kate Walsh talks about how her office plans to work with the next administration to preserve the state's innovative health care systems and local pharmaceutical innovation.

When Trump and his transition team first started to talk up RFK Jr. as someone who was smart on health, there was a tendency for investors in biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies to downplay Kennedy’s role.