WASHINGTON — Robert F. Kennedy Jr. spent much of his confirmation process before becoming the nation’s health secretary reassuring lawmakers that he would not undermine public confidence in vaccines and seeking to distance himself from the anti-vaccine group he founded, Children’s Health Defense.
As health secretary, he has installed former prominent members of that group and other vaccine skeptics in positions at the department he runs or agencies it oversees.
The appointment of officials from CHD, including a former president of the group, points to the growing influence of anti-vaccine advocates at federal health agencies since Kennedy took over in February. To former officials at the Department of Health and Human Services as well as public health experts, the hires are the latest signs that Kennedy is embracing vaccine skepticism and undermining the public health apparatus that reviews, approves, and recommends vaccines.
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