- Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is President-elect Trump's pick to lead the US Department of Health and Human Services.
- RFK has been vocal in his opposition to fluoride in tap water, and vaccine mandates.
"Make America Healthy Again" is the new healthcare slogan from Robert F. Kennedy Jr., President-elect Trump's new pick for Health and Human Services secretary.
Trump has said in the past that he'll let Kennedy "go wild" on health. As head of HHS, Kennedy will be responsible for overseeing many federal health agencies, including the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Kennedy is a former environmental justice lawyer, who pivoted in recent years to running an anti-vaccine charity. He ran for president himself as an independent candidate in the 2024 race, before dropping out to join Trump's inner circle.
Here's what we know so far about Kennedy's public health philosophy, and what kinds of reforms he might fight for in 2025 and beyond.
Kennedy's MAHA ideas include shifts in some basic public health protocols
He has said he would:
- Lobby against fluoride in the water system
Though the federal government isn't in charge of this issue, Kennedy has made it clear he's not in favor of fluoridated water, and would encourage water districts to get rid of it.
- Get rid of vaccine mandates
Kennedy, previously at the helm of one of the biggest anti-vaccine charities, has been careful in recent interviews to say that he wouldn't ban vaccines.
"I'm not going to take away anybody's vaccines," he told NBC after Trump's election. "If vaccines are working for somebody, I'm not going to take that away. People ought to have choice."
Like with fluoride, Kennedy can't actually control which routine vaccines kids get for school, that task is largely up to each individual state to decide. But he could change which vaccines federal employees are required to take, or have an influence on US military vaccine protocols.
His stance has public health officials spooked, because part of what makes vaccination work so well is the fact that nearly everyone in our society does it.
"We have a very short memory of what it is like to hold a child who has been paralyzed with polio, or to comfort a mom who lost their kid from measles," CDC Director Mandy Cohen said on Wednesday at a conference in Washington DC. "I don't want to have to see us go backward in order to remind ourselves that vaccines work."
- Encourage people to use more "functional medicine" and make "alternative" healthcare mainstream
Kennedy has said he'd push for more coverage of functional medicine, and devote 50% of the National Institutes of Health budget to "preventive, alternative and holistic approaches to health." Typically, visits to functional medicine doctors, and the kinds of tests and treatments they provide for health concerns like allergies, gut issues, or disease prevention, are not necessarily covered by traditional health insurance.
He also floated the idea of giving every American a Health Savings Account for medical spending, which is basically a debit card-like alternative to a traditional private healthcare plan. With a HSA, you put money you earn into a tax-free account to use for healthcare expenses like doctor's visits and prescriptions, instead of paying monthly premiums to insurance.
In a Wall Street Journal opinion piece he published in September, Kennedy also said in wants to "reform the Prescription Drug User Fee Act," a move he hopes would boost competition in the drug market.
A big chunk of the other ideas Kennedy has for improving human health have to do with our nutrition and fitness
These are aimed at improving rates of chronic health issues like obesity and type 2 diabetes.
"I don't think you have to be too smart to say we have a chronic disease crisis going on in this country that starts in childhood with terrible diets," FDA Commissioner Robert Califf recently told STAT. "There is work that needs to be done."
Some of Kennedy's biggest ideas on this front include:
- Getting rid of artificial food coloring and banning some additives and chemicals
The European Union has banned specific dyes like red #40, which studies have linked to hyperactivity and neurobehavioral issues like ADHD in some kids. California is currently trying to copy the strategy, with limited success.
On the campaign trail with Trump, Kennedy has made Fruit Loops the poster child for this issue, pointing out how the US version contains more artificial colors and additives than versions sold elsewhere.
- Ending FDA scrutiny of things like raw milk and supplements
Kennedy has claimed that the FDA is battling a "war on public health" and is suppressing the use of anything "that advances human health and can't be patented by Pharma."
On X, he recently listed out the items he feels the agency is overregulating: "psychedelics, peptides, stem cells, raw milk, hyperbaric therapies, chelating compounds, ivermectin, hydroxychloroquine, vitamins, clean foods, sunshine, exercise, nutraceuticals."
The FDA does not tell consumers that they can't drink raw milk, take supplements, or enjoy sunshine and exercise. Rather, the agency often issues warnings about the health hazards of certain items. Raw milk increases your risk of developing E. coli, and in rare cases can be fatal.
The FDA is also responsible for ensuring drugs are safe and effective before they are put on the market. It doesn't approve dietary supplements, but the agency warns consumers when it finds contamination in our supplements and food supply.
- Changing the rules for food stamps
Kennedy doesn't want people to use SNAP benefits to buy ultra-processed foods. He has also said he wants to ban ultra-processed foods in school lunches.
- Getting rid of conflicts of interest and ties to food and drug companies at various federal agencies
Kennedy said he'd work to ensure members of the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee have no connections to food or drug companies. He also wants to reform farm subsides, cutting back on corn and soy.
- Requiring medical students at federally-funded institutions to take nutrition classes
Doctors only tend to receive about three hours of nutrition education during medical school.
- Coming up with some new "presidential fitness standards"
"My uncle John F. Kennedy was right in 1960 when he wrote, 'The physical vigor of our citizens is one of America's most precious resources.'" Kennedy recently wrote in an op-ed.
He also has a couple of ideas for Big Pharma reform
Kennedy's said he wants to:
- Negotiate drug prices
This is something a lot of countries do, but the US does not. Lots of politicians (like Bernie Sanders) have said this is something they want to do. In practice, it's been pretty hard.
- Crack down on pharmaceutical ads
Again, the US is one of the few places in the world where drugmakers can sell commercials that run in primetime TV and market drugs directly to consumers.
It's pretty unclear how realistic this all is
A lot of what Kennedy wants to do for public health is in conflict with Project 2025, which would basically deregulate the entire food industry.
The Project 2025 plan, drafted by a consortium of conservative DC think tanks, would lift federal restrictions on sugar, get rid of dietary guidelines altogether, eliminate mandatory food labeling, and defund school lunches for kids.