Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

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Researchers Predict Lots More Cavities if Fluoride Goes

Study says the ramifications could be expensive

(Newser) - A nationwide ban on adding fluoride to public drinking water could saddle US families with billions in dental bills and result in millions of additional cavities, according to a new study published in JAMA Health Forum . Researchers modeled two scenarios: one in which all public water systems contain optimal...

Kennedy's MAHA Report Has Some Big Gaffes
Kennedy's Health Report
Has Some Serious Gaffes
the rundown
May 30, 2025 7:40 AM CDT

Kennedy's Health Report Has Some Serious Gaffes

Footnotes cite nonexistent studies, apparently the work of artificial intelligence

(Newser) - The Make America Healthy Again commission led by health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. issued an exhaustive report last month prescribing changes for Americans' health. It was crammed with more than 500 footnotes citing studies to buttress its findings—but multiple outlets have found that many of those studies don'...

Feds Cut Key Food Program for Native Americans

Program brought fresh, local food to reservations

(Newser) - After a federal program delivering fresh, local food to Native American reservations was abruptly cut, tribal leaders are scrambling to fill the void, fearing a return to food insecurity and loss of cultural traditions. The USDA has ended its Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement program, following a decision...

RFK Jr. Pleads for Ostriches Awaiting Death in Canada

US officials back family in seeking to prevent cull of 400 birds exposed to avian

(Newser) - US officials have offered to assist a Canadian farm fighting to keep its flock of 400 ostriches alive, though a cull may be coming regardless. The Universal Ostrich farm in southeastern British Columbia was ordered to cull its flock after an outbreak of avian flu killed 69 birds in December...

RFK Jr.: Medical Journals 'Are All Corrupt"

He plans to ban government scientists from publishing research in established journals

(Newser) - Robert F. Kennedy has threatened to bar government scientists from publishing their work in some of the world's most prestigious medical journals. On the Ultimate Human Podcast With Gary Brecka on Tuesday, the US health secretary called the established journals corrupt and said the National Institutes of Health, the...

Kennedy Shifts COVID Policy for Kids, Pregnant Women

CDC will no longer recommend routine vaccinations for healthy members of both groups

(Newser) - It's a big shift for the CDC: The agency will no longer recommend routine COVID shots for "healthy children and healthy pregnant women," health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said in a video posted on X. The move alters prior CDC guidance that called for vaccination...

MAHA Commission Releases Long-Anticipated Report

It targets over-processed foods, chemicals in the environment, and, unsurprisingly, vaccines

(Newser) - During his election night party, President Trump promised to let Robert F. Kennedy Jr. do whatever he wants to "make America healthy again." With Kennedy as America's top health official, that process is now well underway. The Make America Healthy Again Commission that Trump established after taking...

Ben & Jerry's Co-Founder Arrested at Senate Hearing

Ben Cohen was protesting US support of Israel amid Gaza blockade

(Newser) - Ben & Jerry's co-founder Ben Cohen was arrested Wednesday at a US Senate hearing, where he interrupted Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to protest what's happening in Gaza. Kennedy was addressing a hearing of the health, education, labor, and pensions committee when a group of activists started...

'I Don't Think People Should Take Health Advice From Me'

But giving advice is part of his job, critics say after RFK Jr.'s remarks at House hearing

(Newser) - "I don't think people should be taking medical advice from me," Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said during a testy House hearing on Wednesday. He was responding to a question about vaccines from Democratic Rep. Mark Pocan about whether he would choose to...

'Pulling Back the Curtain' on Autism? Experts Not So Sure

They say RFK Jr.'s plan to do so is flawed, as it doesn't take genetics into account

(Newser) - For many experts, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s promise for "pulling back the curtain" to find autism's causes in a few months is jarring—and unrealistic. That's because it appears to ignore decades of science linking about 200 genes that play a role, and...

Kennedy Orders Change in Vaccine Testing

HHS calls for all new vaccines to undergo placebo testing, and critics are worried

(Newser) - Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has for years voiced concerns about vaccine safety, is ordering a notable change to testing at his Department of Health and Human Services. "All new vaccines will undergo safety testing in placebo-controlled trials prior to licensure—a radical departure from past practices," an...

Advocates Sound the Alarm on RFK Jr.'s Potential 'Autism Registry'

NIH apparently planning to bring together private medical records of many Americans

(Newser) - Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has pledged to uncover the cause of autism within months, and as part of that effort, CBS News reports the National Institutes of Health will be "amassing" the private medical records of Americans in order to study the condition. The outlet says a "disease...

RFK Jr. Promised Autism Answers by September. NIH Says No

NIH pushes back the timeline laid out by HHS secretary

(Newser) - Robert F. Kennedy Jr. promised that by September, we'd know "what has caused the autism epidemic," but the National Institutes of Health on Tuesday said it won't quite be that quick. "We're going to get hopefully grants out the door by the end...

Kennedy Wants Food Dyes Out of Thousands of Items

Petroleum-based additives would be eliminated by end of next year

(Newser) - Robert F. Kennedy Jr. plans to announce a ban on certain food dyes that are now used in thousands of items, fulfilling a long-held goal of the Health and Human Services secretary as well as many health advocates. A statement issued Monday said food manufacturers will be prohibited from using...

RFK Jr.: Here's Why Autism 'Dwarfs COVID'

HHS secretary has made multiple controversial comments about autistic kids in recent days

(Newser) - Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has made multiple headlines in recent days thanks to his controversial comments on autism , most recently on Sunday when he compared autism to the COVID pandemic during an interview on a radio show. "It dwarfs the COVID epidemic and the impacts on our country because...

Trump Administration Releases RFK Assassination Files

Tulsi Gabbard says 10K pages have been released, with 50K more to come

(Newser) - Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. praised President Trump on Friday for "lifting the veil" on files related to the 1968 assassination of his father. In a move Trump ordered within days of taking office, the administration released around 10,000 pages of files, which can...

Kennedy Gives FDA Staff Earful
Kennedy Gives FDA Staff Earful
Apr 12, 2025 1:00 PM CDT

Kennedy Gives FDA Staff Earful

First visit to agency includes pronouncement that the 'deep state' is real

(Newser) - Addressing an FDA staff whose morale already has plunged because of thousands of layoffs, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. told employees that they're a "sock puppet" of the industries they regulate, the "deep state" is real, and they should turn in their bosses...

Kennedy Wants CDC to Reverse on Fluoride

EPA launches review of potential risks of putting fluoride in drinking water

(Newser) - Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Monday said he plans to tell the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to stop recommending fluoridation in communities nationwide. At the same time, the Environmental Protection Agency announced it is reviewing "new scientific information" on potential health risks of fluoride in...

RFK Jr.: We Fired Some People by Mistake

HHS director suggests 20% of those let go will be reinstated

(Newser) - Some of the thousands of federal health workers abruptly fired this week will be reinstated, says their boss, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. The secretary of Health and Human Services told reporters that the chaotic back-and-forth is a necessary part of the process being undertaken by Elon Musk's Department of...

Vast Layoffs Begin at HHS
Vast Layoffs Begin at HHS
Apr 1, 2025 11:43 AM CDT

Vast Layoffs Begin at HHS

An estimated 10K workers will be out of a job in 'bloodbath'

(Newser) - Robert Kennedy Jr.'s promised blood-letting at the Department of Health and Human Services began Monday night as the first of thousands of emails began hitting inboxes to let workers know they were either out of a job or were a candidate for reassignment. As the Washington Post reports,...

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