RFK Jr. is Now in Charge of HHS. And Public Health is at Risk
What happens when an anti-science advocate takes control of the country’s most important public health institution? We’re about to find out.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has just been confirmed as the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), putting him in charge of the most powerful health agency in the US. This appointment is deeply concerning given his long history of promoting pseudoscience, vaccine misinformation, and wellness influencer rhetoric that undermines public health.
In addition to founding an anti-vaccine organization that has personally made him millions of dollars, RFK Jr. has spent decades spreading false claims about vaccines, which have led to real-world consequences, including a deadly measles outbreak in Samoa in 2019. His rhetoric has also played a major role in fueling the modern anti-vaccine movement, contributing to declining vaccination rates and the current resurgence of measles outbreaks in the U.S. and worldwide. Now, the man who has actively worked against proven public health measures is in charge of the federal department responsible for vaccination programs, pandemic response, medical research, and healthcare access, which is a reality that could have dangerous consequences for millions of Americans.
Agencies Under HHS
HHS is a giant department, and the Secretary is in charge of multiple agencies, including:
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) – Tracks and fights infectious diseases.
National Institutes of Health (NIH) – Conducts medical research.
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) – Ensures the safety of food, drugs, and medical devices.
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) – Runs Medicare and Medicaid.
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) – Supports addiction and mental health services.
Administration for Children and Families (ACF) – Focuses on child welfare and low-income family programs.
What Does the Head of HHS Do?
The Secretary of HHS is appointed by the President and approved by the Senate, meaning they serve as a key advisor on health policy and oversee a massive department that touches nearly every American’s life. He will now have control over:
Vaccination programs – Overseeing efforts led by the CDC to prevent and respond to infectious diseases. Given his anti-vaccine advocacy, including false claims about autism and vaccines, his leadership here could severely weaken national immunization efforts.
Medical research – Managing funding for the NIH, which supports groundbreaking research in cancer, infectious diseases, Alzheimer’s, and more. RFK Jr. has previously stated he would fire 600 NIH employees and pause infectious disease research for eight years, which could set back scientific progress and leave the U.S. more vulnerable to future pandemics. [More about his likely impact at the NIH here.]
Regulating food and drugs – Overseeing the FDA, which ensures the safety of prescription drugs, vaccines, medical devices, and food products. Given RFK Jr.’s history of attacking the FDA and promoting unproven alternative treatments, there are concerns about whether he will allow scientific integrity to guide FDA decisions.
Medicare & Medicaid – Running Medicare and Medicaid, programs that cover over 160 million people. If RFK Jr. prioritizes anti-establishment, anti-regulation policies, he could disrupt coverage and access for vulnerable populations.
Public health emergency response – Managing national health crises like pandemics, bioterrorism, and natural disasters. RFK Jr.’s opposition to pandemic measures raises serious concerns about how he will respond to the next public health emergency.
Mental health & addiction services – Overseeing the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), which funds addiction treatment and mental health programs. Given his association with alternative health figures and skepticism of mainstream medicine, his leadership could lead to the promotion of ineffective treatments over evidence-based mental health care.
Child & family services – Running programs for foster care, child protective services, early childhood education, and financial assistance for low-income families under the Administration for Children and Families (ACF).
Long-Term care & elderly services – Managing nursing home regulations, elder care initiatives, and disability services.
Why This Appointment is Dangerous
The HHS Secretary is expected to base decisions on science, medical research, and expert guidance. But RFK Jr. has spent years attacking mainstream medicine and public health institutions while using logical fallacies and misinformation to sow doubt about scientific consensus.
For example, rather than engaging with actual experts in nutrition science, public health, or infectious disease, RFK Jr. has built an entire movement around “Making America Healthy Again” by partnering with wellness influencers, alternative health figures, and conspiracy theorists, rather than actual relevant scientists and experts. His approach deliberately undermines evidence-based medicine in favor of personal anecdotes, fear-based messaging, and “natural health” rhetoric that lacks scientific backing.
One of his primary tactics is “just asking questions,” which is a classic logical fallacy used to manufacture doubt about settled science. He frames his misinformation as skepticism, acting as though scientific consensus does not exist, even when the data overwhelmingly contradicts him. This allows him to dismiss peer-reviewed research, cherry-pick misleading statistics, and claim that “Big Pharma” and government agencies are suppressing the truth.
Just in the confirmation hearing alone, he misrepresented data and information several times to fit his own narrative:
He suggested that food in the US was “poisoning the American people” and used wellness influencer pseudo scientific lingo to inaccurately compare 10,000 ingredients in the US to 400 in the EU.
He cited a flawed “study” that was funded by an anti-vaccine group and “published” on a Wordpress blog as evidence for a link between vaccines and autism.
He lied about research on mercury, including a particularly strange lie about tuna sandwiches, suggesting that it was not eliminated and was harmful for children.
Overall, RFK Jr. has promoted and reinforced a growing anti-science movement, one that rejects vaccines, public health guidance, and even basic medical treatments in favor of detoxes from “poisonous ingredients", “natural immunity,” and conspiracy-driven solutions. His continued refusal to work with relevant experts in infectious disease, epidemiology, and nutrition science is a clear red flag that he is not actually interested in making decisions based on science, medical research, or expert guidance, he is only interested in promoting his own self-interests, regardless of the consequences.
This appointment represents a major shift away from evidence-based health policy, at a time when infectious diseases like measles are on the rise due to vaccine hesitancy, a crisis RFK Jr. helped create. But moreover, in direct opposition to his MAHA movement, his leadership threatens the ability to tackle rising chronic disease rates, public health crises, and the structural issues driving poor health outcomes in the U.S.
Instead of focusing on evidence-based strategies to combat heart disease, diabetes, and other chronic health conditions, we are now likely to be distracted by pseudoscience and anti-establishment rhetoric, while critical programs are defunded or deprioritized. Public health policy should be grounded in science to actually help people, but under RFK Jr., the focus may shift toward misinformation, conspiracy-driven narratives, and ineffective "natural" health solutions, leaving real health problems unaddressed.
What Can You Do?
With RFK Jr. leading HHS, the spread of pseudoscience and misinformation at the highest levels of government is a real threat to public health. But science still exists, and experts are still fighting to protect evidence-based policies. Here’s what you can do:
Follow and support science communicators – Seek out trusted experts in medicine, epidemiology, nutrition science, and public health who work to debunk misinformation and provide accurate, evidence-based information. Engage with and amplify their work so factual information reaches more people.
Advocate for evidence-based policies – Support policies and legislation that prioritize public health, social determinants of health, chronic disease prevention, and healthcare access. Contact lawmakers (the app 5calls is great), engage in discussions, and push back against attempts to weaken science-backed initiatives.
Stay engaged – HHS oversees critical health programs that affect millions of people. Pay attention to policy changes, funding cuts, or shifts in public health messaging, and push for accountability when needed.
At a time when it seems like science is being sidelined in favor of ideology, staying informed, supporting real experts, and speaking up for evidence-based policies is more important than ever.