Trump administration: Robert F. Kennedy Jr, anti-vaccination figure, named health secretary

Steph Deschamps / November 20, 2024

Donald Trump believes that Robert F. Kennedy Jr, appointed to head the Department of Health, will play an important role in addressing the harmful consequences of harmful chemicals, pollutants, pesticides, pharmaceuticals and food additives in the US.

Following his 2024 presidential victory, Donald Trump has gone straight to naming the personalities who will make up his administration. Succeeding Joe Biden, he appointed Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to head the Department of Health and Human Services on November 14. A leading anti-vaccine figure, he “will play an important role in helping to ensure that everyone is protected from the harmful chemicals, pollutants, pesticides, pharmaceuticals and food additives that have contributed to this country's overwhelming health crisis”, explained the president-elect. In his message posted on social networks, Trump believes that Americans have long been victims of public health deception and misinformation by the agribusiness complex and pharmaceutical companies.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr's appointment to a key post in the Trump administration is provoking strong reactions, particularly from healthcare professionals. Among his most controversial statements, he described Covid-19 as an “ethnically targeted virus”. While this choice may come as a surprise to some, it was actually expected. At the end of October, during a rally at Madison Square Garden, Donald Trump had claimed that he would allow Kennedy to “go on a drug rampage”. In his victory speech, the president-elect had also expressed his desire to “give America back its health”.

A lawyer specializing in environmental law, Robert F. Kennedy Jr had briefly participated in the last presidential campaign, before calling for a vote for Donald Trump. He did, however, gather over 300,000 votes.