(NewsNation) — The Senate will vote Thursday on whether to confirm Robert F. Kennedy Jr., President Donald Trump’s pick for Health and Human Services secretary.
Kennedy’s nomination was advanced earlier this month in a party-line vote. During a previous hearing, lawmakers pressed him on his past comments about vaccines. A former 2024 independent presidential candidate who dropped out and endorsed Trump, Kennedy has sparked concerns with his record of spreading misinformation regarding vaccines, including from Republican Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky.
Kennedy can only afford to lose three Republican votes in the Senate.
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In previous hearings, Kennedy touted the “Make America Healthy Again” movement and decried the United States’ rising rates of diseases such as obesity, addiction and diabetes.
If confirmed, Kennedy will control a $1.7 trillion agency that oversees food and hospital inspections, hundreds of health clinics, vaccine recommendations and health insurance for roughly half the country.
