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Scientists comment on Donald Trump appointing Robert F. Kennedy Jr as Health Secretary.
Dr David Nunan, Senior Research Fellow at the Centre for Evidence Based Medicine, University of Oxford, said:
“One of the key issues Robert F. Kennedy Jr. raises is the need to address the “revolving door” phenomenon within key health organizations like the FDA. This practice, where leaders transition directly into high-paying consultancy roles for companies regulated by the FDA, creates clear conflicts of interest. His stance on ending this cycle is a point many can agree on, as it would strengthen the integrity of these health institutions.
“While Robert F. Kennedy Jr. highlights important issues, such as the need for rigorous regulatory practices, there are concerns about his approach to health policy. Critics argue that he has made claims about disease causes and interventions that lack strong evidence. Additionally, his challenges to well-established scientific consensus, especially regarding pharmaceutical and government-funded research, often frame these systems as corrupt, a perspective some believe risks overshadowing the importance of focusing on robust evidence-based solutions. For example, his call for new regulations around vaccine trials, while potentially valuable, might carry more credibility if he and his administration were the first to participate in such studies.
“Tackling the fundamental issues in U.S. healthcare governance and regulation is crucial for improving transparency, the quality of evidence, and ultimately, American health outcomes. However, just because someone advocates for sensible changes doesn’t mean they themselves are sensible or follow an evidence-based approach. Critics have raised concerns that RFK Jr.’s rhetoric often appears to dismiss or misrepresent evidence that contradicts his positions. America needs a better system upheld by people of integrity who genuinely follow the evidence, and I fear RFK will not fit that description.”
Professor Sarah Berry, Professor of Nutritional Sciences, King’s College London, said:
“It’s important to recognise the opportunity that we have right now to galvanize on the problems and solutions that we do agree on. Improving school food provision, reducing junk foods and heavily processed unhealthy foods and addressing the rise in diet-related chronic diseases are commendable priorities. Ensuring that food companies and pharmaceutical companies’ interests come after public health could be the start of a really positive change.”
Dr Lindsey Edwards, expert in microbiology at King’s College London, said:
“Robert F Kennedy Jr will now have the opportunity to address the health concerns of the American public for which he has been fiercely advocating. He will have his work cut out getting United States (US) Health Agencies aligning with the mission of ‘Making America Healthy Again’.
“Antimicrobial resistance is a growing global threat, responsible for one in eight global deaths a year – estimated to kill 50 million people per year by 20501. Could the next pandemic be on the horizon? In the not-too-distant future, Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) means you could die from a simple tooth infection? This could become an everyday reality for the average American.
“Tackling the growing threat of antimicrobial resistance requires all the tools we have at our disposal including vaccines. Vaccines can help prevent the spread of infections. Fewer infections mean the requirement for prescription of antimicrobials (antibiotics) may be reduced. If less antimicrobials are used this can reduce the risk of antimicrobial resistance and drug-resistant infections. Vaccines also have a unique advantage because resistance to vaccines is incredibly rare.
“It’s crucial that the AMR and the development of new antibiotics, vaccines, and diagnostics need urgent attention and support from the new US government.”
Prof Beate Kampmann, Professor of Paediatric Infection & Immunity at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), said:
“Health policies need evidence, not opinion. The appointment of RKJ is a slap in the face of evidence-based health policies, including those that have underpinned the use of safe and effective vaccines in the United States of America.
“During the 1950s an annual average of greater than 500,000 cases of measles and nearly 500 deaths due to measles were reported in the US. This picture changed completely since introduction of the measles vaccine: Measles vaccination has averted more than 60 million deaths worldwide in the last 25 years, including in the USA. Progress will be rapidly lost in societies where vaccine hesitancy is promoted – as I fear will be the case in the US if Kennedy is appointed.”
Prof Sir Andrew Pollard FMedSci FRS, Director of the Oxford Vaccine Group, University of Oxford, said:
“At this point we don’t know if Robert F Kennedy will be confirmed as US secretary of health, and if he is, which policies he will pursue. However, there is a real concern that his appointment could provide a new platform which he might use to pursue the same anti-science positions on life-saving public health interventions that he has advanced previously, and that he could continue to promote and misrepresent evidence to support spurious claims on vaccines. If this makes families hesitate to immunise against the deadly diseases that threaten children, the consequence will be fatal for some.
“Today, vaccines prevent 3.5-5 million deaths per year globally, and even a small change in confidence will be a disaster for many families. However, US policy on immunisation follows advice from the expert Advisory Committee on Immunisation Practices, ACIP, (equivalent to our JCVI in the UK), and vaccines are delivered by doctors who know how important is the shield that they provide to defend the population, which provides some mitigation against headwinds from Washington.”
Prof Sir Simon Wessely FRS, Regius Professor of Psychiatry, King’s College London, said:
“That sound that you just heard was my jaw dropping, hitting the floor and rolling out of the door. As someone who graduated from a Texas High School I have great admiration and affection for Americans. They deserve better, much better, than this”
Dr Krishanthi Subramaniam, Lecturer at the Institute of Infection, Veterinary and Ecological Sciences, University of Liverpool, said:
“The appointment of RFK as Health Secretary is alarming not just to the health of those living in the U.S. but also to everyone in the global community. Kennedy has a track-record of being a vaccine denier and has touted vaccine misinformation as scientific truth. This announcement may usher in a heightened period of vaccine hesitancy in the United States which would mean outbreaks of diseases that vaccines have kept at bay.”
Prof Johnjoe McFadden, Professor Emeritus, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Surrey, said:
“Trump’s appointment of RFK Jr as health secretary once again demonstrates his disregard for science in favour of pseudoscience, misinformation, and conspiracy theories. If he is confirmed, the policies he advocates could be a disaster, particularly for American children.”
Dr David Elliman, Consultant Paediatrician, Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children, said:
“The news that Donald Trump will be nominating Robert F Kennedy for US Secretary of Health and Human Services is very worrying. While RFK Jr’s desire to tackle chronic conditions, including obesity is commendable, how he might go about it is less clear.
“In his earlier days, he was an ardent conservationist, which is to be applauded. What is really concerning are his views on vaccination. He has perpetuated myths, including that of a link between MMR vaccine and autism, with an utter disregard for the evidence. It he is appointed and continues in the same mode, I fear not just for the vaccination programme in USA, but similar programmes around the world, and for healthcare, in general. Vaccination has probably saved more lives and is better researched than most, if not all, aspects of healthcare. RFK Jr could set this back and be responsible for the death and disability of myriads of people, particularly children.
“Let us hope that, if appointed, he adopts a more responsible attitude. Directing his energies to the ‘industrial food complex’ would be no bad thing, as would ensuring more transparency from pharmaceutical companies.”
Declared interests
The nature of this story means everyone quoted above could be perceived to have a stake in it. As such, our policy is not to ask for interests to be declared – instead, they are implicit in each person’s affiliation.