Lawmakers grilled Robert F Kennedy Jr's handling of the worst measles outbreak in decades, as the US health secretary tried to shift focus away from his vaccine stances during his first hearing before Congress in months. Democrats from the House Ways & Means Committee accused Kennedy of bungling the response to measles and undermining the safety of childhood immunisations. Kennedy did not discuss his vaccine agenda, instead focusing on ending the era of federal policies that fuelled the chronic disease epidemic in the US.
President Trump and I are challenging the status quo and the institutions that defend it as we work to make America healthy again in just 15 months, he said. Kennedy was at the hearing on Thursday to present the Trump administration's proposal to cut his agency's budget in the coming fiscal year by about $16bn (£11.8bn), a 12.5% decrease from last year. During the three-hour appearance, Kennedy, a longtime vaccine sceptic, heard a range of complaints from lawmakers related to his cuts to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) staff and cancer research, as well as his changes to vaccine recommendations.
Your dangerous conspiracy theories are undermining safe and effective vaccines, California Democratic Representative Mike Thompson told Kennedy, alongside a chart of nearly 4,000 measles cases reported in the US over the last two years. Since taking office, Kennedy has attempted to remake longstanding US vaccine policies, including slashing the number of recommended shots for children and replacing an expert advisory panel with several vaccine critics. Many of these changes were recently halted by a judge who found the new panel members had not been properly appointed.
Kennedy faced questioning related to the recent measles outbreak, which resulted in the deaths of two children in Texas. At times, he acknowledged that the measles vaccine could have been life-saving, but he expressed frustration at what he perceived as a lack of open debate during the hearing. Despite criticism, some Republicans applauded his agenda, with one calling him a breath of fresh air. Still, concerns about his approach to autism research were raised, revealing the complex and contentious landscape in public health policy discussions.
President Trump and I are challenging the status quo and the institutions that defend it as we work to make America healthy again in just 15 months, he said. Kennedy was at the hearing on Thursday to present the Trump administration's proposal to cut his agency's budget in the coming fiscal year by about $16bn (£11.8bn), a 12.5% decrease from last year. During the three-hour appearance, Kennedy, a longtime vaccine sceptic, heard a range of complaints from lawmakers related to his cuts to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) staff and cancer research, as well as his changes to vaccine recommendations.
Your dangerous conspiracy theories are undermining safe and effective vaccines, California Democratic Representative Mike Thompson told Kennedy, alongside a chart of nearly 4,000 measles cases reported in the US over the last two years. Since taking office, Kennedy has attempted to remake longstanding US vaccine policies, including slashing the number of recommended shots for children and replacing an expert advisory panel with several vaccine critics. Many of these changes were recently halted by a judge who found the new panel members had not been properly appointed.
Kennedy faced questioning related to the recent measles outbreak, which resulted in the deaths of two children in Texas. At times, he acknowledged that the measles vaccine could have been life-saving, but he expressed frustration at what he perceived as a lack of open debate during the hearing. Despite criticism, some Republicans applauded his agenda, with one calling him a breath of fresh air. Still, concerns about his approach to autism research were raised, revealing the complex and contentious landscape in public health policy discussions.
