Now, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. That he was chosen by President-elect Donald Trump Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)An environmental lawyer may oversee a number of government agencies.
At a charity dinner in New York City last month, Trump hostage He said that Kennedy would “go wild with health” and that Kennedy “wants healthy people, he wants healthy food.”
Many of Kennedy’s health care proposals have worried doctors and the public health community. Other policy proposals are seen as more reasonable, but public health officials have warned that Kennedy’s exaggerated and sometimes unsubstantiated claims about health risks could erode trust in doctors and health agencies.
Here are some of the agencies and offices Kennedy would oversee if confirmed by the Senate.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. attends a campaign event for Republican presidential candidate and former President Donald Trump in Milwaukee on November 1, 2024.
Joel Angel Juarez/Reuters, FILE
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
The CDC’s mission it’s about protecting public health by informing Americans about diseases and working to prevent the spread of disease.
The agency provides recommendations on vaccines, which are often adopted by states; monitors disease and illness, including threats such as COVID-19 and foodborne illness; and provides information and tools to prevent illness, injury or disability.
Although the CDC can influence health policies in local governments, it is not an enforcement agency and its recommendations are only guidelines. The only power the CDC has, however, is that it can detain an individual at US ports of entry or impose rules on migration to the US to prevent the spread of infectious diseases.
CDC supervises 10 centers, including the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, the National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities, and the Global Health Centers.
Signage is seen outside the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) headquarters in Atlanta on March 14, 2020.
Elijah Nouvelage/Bloomberg via Getty Images, FILE
Food and Drug Administration The FDA It reviews the safety and effectiveness of medical devices, drugs and biologicals, which include products such as vaccines, blood components and gene therapy.
The agency also regulates the safety of food, cosmetics, radiation-emitting devices and tobacco products. It supervises eight centers and offices, including the Center for Biological Evaluation and Research and the Oncology Center of Excellence.
Kennedy has criticized the FDA and claimed interviews There are “whole departments” like the food department that “need to go” because their employees “aren’t doing their jobs.”
Kennedy has he swore to combat artificial food dyes and remove ultra-processed foods from school lunches, saying the diet can lead to chronic disease.
A view of the Food and Drug Administration’s White Oak campus on Dec. 17, 2020, in Silver Spring, Maryland.
Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images, FILE
“If you work at the FDA and are part of this corrupt system, I have two messages for you: 1. Save your records and 2. Pack your bags,” he said. He wrote on the social platform X at the end of October
National Institutes of Health
The NIH is the nation’s medical research agency, and consists of 27 different ingredientsCalled Institutes or Centers.
Each ingredient focuses on specific diseases or body systems, research to help prevent disease and improve health.
Kennedy suggested in a comment The Wall Street Journal Directing half of NIH’s research budget to “preventive, alternative, and holistic approaches to health.”
Office of the Surgeon General
He is called “the nation’s doctor”. general surgeon Its mission is to “provide Americans with the best scientific information on how to improve their health and reduce their risk of disease and injury.”
Indian Health Service
The IHS It works to promote public health for the federal tribes of American Indians and Alaska Natives.
Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry
ATSDR it includes communities exposed to natural or man-made hazardous substances and specifies “the public health consequences of environmental exposures and the protection of individuals from such exposures.”
Health Resources and Services Administration
The HRSA focuses on providing health care and programs to communities in need, including low-income people, people with HIV, pregnant women, children, rural communities, transplant patients, and health care workers.
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
SAMHSA It is a branch of HHS with a mission to reduce the impact of substance abuse and mental illness in US communities through public health efforts.
Training and Strategic Response Administration
ASPR He works to help medical and public health agencies and personnel prepare for, respond to, and recover from disasters and public health emergencies.
For example, ASPR was behind the federal government program They sent him free COVID tests at home to homes in the US.
Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health
The ARPA-Hs mission It is investing in technologies and platforms to help transform medicine and health, “for the benefit of all patients and this cannot be easily achieved through traditional research or commercial activity”.
The OIG It focuses on oversight to “promote economy, efficiency, effectiveness, and integrity” of HHS programs.
Donald Trump and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. former president and Republican presidential candidate at Turning Point PAC on October 23, 2024 at the Gas South Arena.
Erik S Lesser/ EPA via Shutterstock
Administration for Children and Families
ACF It is a division of HHS that promotes programs to promote the economic and social well-being of children and families.
Coexistence Community Administration
ACL works to help older adults and people with disabilities participate in their communities where and with whom they live.
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid services
CMS Administers the Medicare program, the federal health insurance program for people age 65 and older and those with disabilities.
The agency also works with state programs like Medicaid, which is health insurance for low-income people, and the Children’s Health Insurance Program, which provides low-cost coverage to families who don’t qualify for Medicaid.
