(Reuters) – Robert F. Kennedy Jr., an environmental and anti-vaccine activist, was chosen by President-elect Donald Trump to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, the United States’ top health agency.
Below are some of the key policy positions Kennedy has taken in recent months in editorials, tweets and interviews:
Vaccines
Kennedy has criticized vaccines, including making false medical claims that vaccines are linked to autism. He opposed state and federal COVID-19 restrictions. However, he told Reuters that any American who wants a vaccine for themselves or their children will have access to it.
Processed foods
Kennedy calls for a ban on hundreds of food additives and chemicals. He has called for ultra-processed foods to be removed from school meals as part of a goal to reduce the incidence of diet-related chronic diseases.
Dietary Guidelines
He has said that the Food and Drug Administration’s nutrition division, which is responsible for nutrition labels on food, “should go away. They’re not doing their job. They’re not protecting our children.”
Weight loss medications
Kennedy has criticized the popular Novo Nordisk (NYSE:) NOVOb.CO drug Ozempic, which is often prescribed for weight loss, saying it focused on the symptoms of the obesity crisis rather than fixing the food system, and that the drugs “make the wallets happy” of pharmaceutical executives.
Drug research
Kennedy has said that half of the National Institutes of Health’s research budgets should be focused on preventive, alternative and holistic approaches to health.
Raw milk
Kennedy wants to end the FDA’s “war on public health,” including what he called “aggressive suppression” of psychedelics, peptides, stem cells, raw milk and more.
Fluoride
He has called for the removal of fluoride from public water.
Medical (TASE:) schools
He has said nutrition classes should be mandatory at government-funded medical schools.
Farms
He has called for a review of standards for the use of pesticides and other chemicals, and a reform of agricultural subsidies.
