The possibility that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. could become Health Secretary if former President Trump wins the election has angered Democrats and the health care community as he gains increasing influence on the former president’s transition team.
Speculation about Kennedy’s future role has increased after Nicole Shanahan – Kennedy’s running mate before he dropped out of the campaign last month – recently said he would do “incredible work” at the Department of Health and Human Services if Trump wins in November.
While the former president has not said whether or which cabinet post he would offer Kennedy, the prospect of the former independent candidate taking over as head of the Health Service is already facing resistance from health experts who criticize Kennedy’s anti-vaccine rhetoric.
“We can only hope that he doesn’t get a position in government, because someone who thinks like that, who just has these unchanging beliefs no matter how much evidence is against him, is not the kind of person you want in a position of power,” said Paul Offit, director of the Vaccine Education Center at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.
During a recent podcast conversation with nutrition entrepreneur Tom Bilyeu, Shanahan sparked rumors about a possible role for Kennedy as HHS secretary.
“It manages a huge portfolio,” she told Bilyeu. “Bobby in that role would be excellent.”
“I would love for the state of the science to remain uncensored,” Shanahan added.
Kennedy has long courted controversy for promoting the debunked theory that vaccines cause autism. This message is supported and amplified by the nonprofit organization he founded, Children’s Health Defense. He has since expanded his focus to include the rise in chronic diseases in children, which he also attributes to vaccines.
Kennedy wants to lend a hand Trump defeat Vice President Harris and has told voters that Trump will “make America healthy again.” Before suspending his campaign, he ran social media ads asking, “Is America sicker than ever?”
The former Democrat and current independent is lobbying Trump for a role in his possible next administration, and a Kennedy ally said his post would likely have “public health implications.”
“Bobby has a network of experts, lawyers and leaders ready to step in and fight,” the ally said.
Trump recently said during a rally in Arizona that he would ask Kennedy to serve on a panel to investigate “the decades-long rise in chronic health problems, including autoimmune diseases, autism, obesity, infertility and many more.”
The former president’s comments come as Kennedy continues to face criticism for his views on public health. Kennedy has vowed to eliminate corporate corruption in public regulatory agencies such as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH), which he says are controlled by vast corporate interests.
The HHS oversees 13 different agencies, and Kennedy has long argued that they are in dire need of reform.
In campaign speeches, news interviews, podcasts and other public forums, he has described his desire to eviscerate the scientific agencies responsible for science and health policy, such as the NIH, FDA and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. He said NBC News Over the past year, he says, the agencies have become “sock puppets” for the industries they regulate, and he wants to replace scientists and government officials with people who share his views and are not burdened by conflicts of interest.
Trump, meanwhile, has repeatedly stated that he will not “give a penny to any school that has a vaccine or mask requirement.” The Republican candidate’s campaign team says he is only referring to the COVID-19 vaccination requirement in schools. But that has not allayed fears that he could accelerate the already worrying trend of withering childhood vaccinations.
All states, including Washington, DC, require children to be vaccinated against certain diseases before they start school, including measles, mumps, polio, tetanus, whooping cough and chickenpox. A plan to cut federal funding would have far-reaching consequences.
Brett Giroir, a former assistant secretary of health during the Trump administration, said he never encountered resistance from the president on vaccinations, even though he has made increasing HPV vaccination rates in children and Covid-19 vaccinations a priority.
Giroir also noted that Trump was “excited” to sign an executive order to modernize flu vaccines.
He said the former president had always wanted to hear different opinions and might therefore be willing to listen to Kennedy.
Kennedy’s controversial stance on medicine, health and wellness made him a target of Democrats, who accused him of running a spoiler campaign that would give Trump an advantage. Now that Kennedy has ended his campaign and officially endorsed Trump, they are stepping up their attacks.
“Four years after a generation-long pandemic shook our nation to its core, we now have a presidential candidate trying to exploit those fears by suggesting he will pick someone who will dismantle an agency that was central to coordinating the science and distribution of the COVID vaccine that saved millions of lives,” said Michael Ceraso, a Democratic strategist and campaign veteran.
“Trump continues to spread panic instead of offering policy solutions based on reality,” he said. “The whole thing now suffers from RFK and Trump being at the center.”
Kennedy’s supporters see his positions as a necessary change in the health-industrial sophisticated. They like how he challenges the narrative of certain chemicals and their effects on human functioning. Some in the environmental community also appreciate his criticism of poisons and pollutants.
According to some sources, leading the health agency is a natural choice for Kennedy, given where his personal interests have taken him.
“No position will be easy, but I think he has the best experience for HHS,” the Kennedy ally said of his possible future.
During Trump’s first term, the president had difficulty getting some of his nominees confirmed. He could face opposition again, especially if Democrats retain control of the Senate.
He could also face resistance from his own party.
According to Project 2025, the conservative Heritage Foundation’s plan for Trump’s goals if re-elected, Republicans want to turn the Department of Health and Human Services back into a “ministry of life” using a Christian-based basis for government.
There is concern among Republicans that Trump’s appointment of Kennedy could alienate the religious right. Many have no interest in a former Democrat taking over the leadership of the ministry.
“There would be a fierce backlash from pro-life Republicans,” said Matt Wolking, deputy communications director for Trump’s 2020 campaign.
Georges Benjamin, executive director of the American Public Health Association, said that, in addition to his opinion, Kennedy’s lack of experience as an administrative official should lead to immediate disqualification.
Unlike his predecessors, he did not have first-hand experience in managing vast health care systems or in the industry itself.
“He has done none of those things. He has certainly been a fairly successful environmentalist and lawyer, but in terms of his skills, expertise and education, he is not qualified,” Benjamin said.
Democrats, meanwhile, believe Trump will pay for having Kennedy in their ranks.
“Donald Trump now bears full responsibility for RFK Jr., including his dangerous public health stance that cost children their lives,” Matt Corridoni, spokesman for the Democratic National Committee, said in a statement.
“Anyone who had concerns that the first Trump administration was too extreme should be afraid that RFK Jr. could even come close to serving a second Trump term.”
