(NewsNation) — President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy, is going in front of lawmakers for his second confirmation hearing Thursday.
He faced senators in the Finance Committee on Wednesday — now he will be questioned by those on the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee.
Should Kennedy be confirmed, he will be in charge of a $1.7 trillion agency that oversees insurance for nearly half the country; funnels billions of dollars to the states for Medicaid; and provides health insurance for the nation’s older Americans through Medicare.
HELP committee chair Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., in his opening statements Thursday, said he agrees with Kennedy on some issues — such as being against ultra-processed food and wanting to reduce obesity.
However, Cassidy added, “it’s no secret I have some reservations about your past positions on vaccines and a couple other issues.”
Wednesday’s hearing was contentious, with Kennedy grilled over his past remarks on vaccines. Experts say he has a record of spreading misinformation and conspiracy theories.
However, Kennedy has tried to downplay these past remarks.
“News reports have claimed that I am anti-vaccine or anti-industry — I am neither. I am pro-safety,” Kennedy said at Wednesday’s hearing before being interrupted by a protestor, who was escorted out.
Later, Kennedy said he supports the measles and polio vaccine.
“I will do nothing as HHS secretary that makes it difficult or discourages people from taking any of those vaccines,” Kennedy said.
Still, he made several false claims during the hearing, including about the COVID-19 vaccine, such as that children under six don’t need it because they have a “zero risk” of coronavirus infection.
This isn’t true: According to several studies, COVID-19 was a leading cause of death for children 1 to 4. The University of Oxford found it ranked seventh as a cause of death among that age group between 2021 and 2022. In addition, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends COVID-19 vaccines for those 6 months and older and says the inoculation is safe for children.
Kennedy also inaccurately claimed Medicaid is fully paid for by the federal government when in reality, states and federal taxpayers fund it. When it came to the topic of Alzheimer’s, Kennedy misstated the state of the science and research, falsely claiming the National Institutes of Health ignores “any other hypothesis” for it than amyloid.
The NIH’s $3.8 billion budget for Alzheimer’s and similar dementias includes researching a range of other factors that may underlie how Alzheimer’s develops, the Associated Press reported.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
