Secretaries of the Department of Health and Human Services may advocate for massive cuts to health care programs and field questions on a variety of other health issues.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xdxwtaqfpbg
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has something to do.
Almost four months after his new job, Kennedy Jr. testifies to May 14, before May 14, from the proposed budget cuts to the flip-flops of budget cuts as a preventative tool on national scales.
Kennedy, who has a history of making controversial remarks about vaccines, recently supported vaccinations as a preventative tool during the measles outbreak, noting that vaccines should be left to the discretion of parents. He recently unveiled a plan to remove artificial food dyes from US food supplies.
Members of the House Budget Committee and the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pension Committee are likely to question him about the dramatic reductions in health and human services programs and staffing he leads. They may also tackle his push to ban fluoride from drinking water.
President Donald Trump’s $1.7 trillion “skinny budget” proposal for 2026 will reduce non-defensive spending by 23% compared to 2025. The budget calls for $94 billion from the Department of Health and Human Services agency, reducing it by about 26% from the 2025 level, and cutting programs and staff at agencies, including the National Institutes of Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
However, the president’s budget aims to send $500 million infusions to Kennedy’s Make America Great Again Initiative. The program aims to tackle the issues through reduced nutrition, physical activity, drug therapy, and improving food and drug quality and safety.
Top health organizations representing Alzheimer’s, cancer, heart and lung disease patients are warning of the dangers posed by recent and proposed federal budget cuts, as Kennedy testifies before a May 14th Congressional Committee.
Leaders from the American Heart Association, American Cancer Society, American Lung Association and Usagainstalzheimer have outlined the results of these reductions and called on Congress to “take immediate action” to protect funds for biomedical research and disease prevention.
In about five weeks this year, the National Institutes of Health fired $18.1 billion in medical research funds, according to a new analysis published in the Journal of the American Medical Association on May 8.
“Actions taken so far and proposed further actions to cut research funding undermine public health, weaken global competitiveness, and refuse to treat and treat patients in need,” said Emily Holbowich, vice president of federal advocacy at the American Heart Association.
– Adriana Rodriguez
Americans are concerned about the Trump administration’s ability to contain the ongoing outbreak of measles, but the majority believe that vaccines for the disease are safe, according to a new Reuters/Ipsos poll.
Only 31% of respondents to the two-day poll agreed to a statement that the administration was dealing with the measles outbreak responsibly, but 40% disagreed, with the rest uncertain or not answering questions.
The poll has testified before a pair of Congressional Committees on a variety of controversial topics, including vaccines, by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
The US is currently facing one of the biggest measles outbreaks in 25 years, exceeding the 1,000 mark as of May 8th. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports three deaths, including two non-vaccinated children in Texas.
– Reuters
Groups from the Alzheimer’s Disease Association lined up outside the House Approximate Committee meeting room.
Association volunteer Dean Brenner said he has come to express his opposition to HHS cuts, including many Alzheimer’s disease-related programs and research.
“We have 7 million people across the age of 65 who are suffering from Alzheimer’s,” Brenner said.
Many of the groups, including Brenner, a Washington, DC resident, wore the purple colour, the official color of the organization. He said he joined the association after his mother died of a neurodegenerative disease in 2018.
“We’re just the ones we want to be most careful about for members of Congress,” he said.
-Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy
Last month, Kennedy announced that it had banned artificial food dyes and that it had abolished eight petroleum-based synthetic dyes in the country’s food supply. Kennedy has long criticised big foods and big pharma, and has denounced the country’s “chronic disease epidemic” regarding additives and junk food.
He also directs the department to conduct research aimed at identifying the “environmental toxins” behind the rate of autism rise. His critics hammered him about his views on the vaccine.
Kennedy also pushed to curb fluoride use in water supplies, saying the chemicals used to protect teeth make Americans “silly.” He touted plans to reduce use in drinking water.
Kennedy will discuss the budget that proposed Trump’s budget at two separate hearings before the May 14th Congress. The first meeting will be in front of the House Appropriations Committee at 9:30am. Chaired by Rep. Tom Cole (R-Oklahoma). The committee’s ranking member is Rep. Rosa Delauro (D-Connecticut).
At 1:30pm on EDT, Kennedy will testify before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions. The committee is chaired by Louisiana Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy. Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders, who conspires with Democrats, is a ranking member of the committee.
