Lawmakers grilled Robert F Kennedy Jr. on his handling of the worst measles outbreak in decades, as the US health secretary sought to shift focus away from vaccine stances during his first hearing before Congress in months.
Democrats from the House Ways & Means Committee accused Kennedy of bungling the response to measles and undermining the safety of childhood vaccinations.
In a departure from his usual vaccine agenda, Kennedy emphasized ending the era of federal policies that fuelled the chronic disease epidemic in the US. President Trump and I are challenging the status quo and the institutions that defend it as we work to make America healthy again in just 15 months, he stated.
During this three-hour hearing, Kennedy proposed a $16 billion cut to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) budget, a reduction of 12.5% from the previous year. Lawmakers expressed a variety of complaints about Kennedy's cuts to HHS staff, cancer research, and his alterations to vaccine recommendations.
California Democratic Representative Mike Thompson confronted Kennedy by displaying a chart illustrating nearly 4,000 measles cases in the US reported in 2025 and 2026. Your dangerous conspiracy theories are undermining safe and effective vaccines, he asserted.
Since his appointment, Kennedy has attempted to alter longstanding US vaccine policies, including reducing the number of recommended vaccinations for children. However, in March, a judge invalidated many of those changes, ruling that the newly appointed advisory panel members had not been properly appointed.
Democrat Linda Sanchez pressed Kennedy regarding the US measles outbreak that resulted in the deaths of two children in Texas last year. While Kennedy had previously endorsed the safety of the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine, he has also raised doubts about its safety at different times, leading to questions about its impact on children’s lives.
Frustrated with the hearing's interruptions, Kennedy stated, They've all shut me up and they've talked about science, but science is about debate. Despite bipartisan criticism, some Republican lawmakers praised Kennedy's agenda, while others, including Republican Blake Moore, expressed disappointment with the administration's autism research initiatives.
Kennedy has centered his mission on investigating the causes of autism, a complex syndrome. Following his controversial claims linking Tylenol use during pregnancy to autism, medical experts continue to dispute his assertions.
In response to questions about budget cuts affecting aid programs for mothers and children, Kennedy insisted these cuts were necessary due to a significant national deficit of $39 trillion.
