RFK Jr to take top US health post after Senate confirmation

WASHINGTON: Robert F Kennedy Jr, a vaccine critic who has pledged to tackle chronic disease, was confirmed by the US Senate as Health Secretary on Thursday, after overcoming resistance from the medical establishment and members of Congress with promises to limit his role in vaccine policy.

President Donald Trump will sign an executive order to establish a MAHA commission, named for Kennedy's "Make America Healthy Again" movement, White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said on Fox News on Thursday.

The order will direct the new secretary of the Health and Human Services Department "to investigate this chronic crisis plaguing our country", she said.

The vote to confirm Kennedy was 52-48, with Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky the lone Republican joining all 47 Democrats to vote against Kennedy, who had made pledges to protect existing vaccination programs in a bid to secure votes of hesitant lawmakers.

Kennedy will oversee multiple high-profile agencies, including the FDA and Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.

Kennedy, 71, is an environmental lawyer who has long sown doubts about the safety and efficacy of vaccines that have helped curb disease and prevented millions of deaths for decades.

He will now run an HHS department that directs more than $3 trillion in healthcare spending. Also under HHS purview are the Medicare and Medicaid programs that provide health insurance for over 140 million Americans and the National Institutes of Health (NIH). 

In addition to pledging to work to end chronic disease, Kennedy has said he wants to break any ties between employees at the US drugs regulator and industry and advise US water systems to remove fluoride. 

Opponents argued that he is unfit for the job because of his prominent role in the anti-vaccine movement.

Kennedy's path to confirmation was fraught and did not always appear to have the necessary votes among Republicans. He had to overcome his past as a life-long Democrat, his previous views in support of abortion, as well as his stance on vaccines. 

Some prominent members of his own family, including cousin Caroline Kennedy, also urged his rejection.

Ultimately, Senate Republicans closed ranks as they have for every Trump cabinet selection so far.

The Trump White House has said it plans to drastically shrink the size of the federal government. Kennedy has said he wants to get rid of many employees at both the FDA and NIH.