On Sept. 4, 2025 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. sat for questioning at a Senate Finance hearing. This comes amidst many changes to the nation’s leading health organization, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), including former CDC director Susan Monarez being ousted, multiple committee members being fired and a walkout in protest to these changes.
The hearing lasted three hours, and 27 Senators were given five minutes to ask questions and give comments to the secretary. In his opening statement, Kennedy listed goals that his team and the Trump administration have worked to realize.
During the hearing, Kennedy listed, “In just half a year, we’ve taken on food dyes, baby formula contamination, the grass loophole, fluoride in our drinking water, gas station heroin, electronic cigarettes, drug prices, prior authorization, information blocking… and healthcare interoperability.”
However, he was suddenly interrupted during this statement by a member in the audience who complained that the time it took to be granted a prior authorization was three months.
The secretary also acknowledged Dekalb County Police Officer David Rose. On Aug. t 8, a shooting occurred near the Atlanta CDC headquarters and Rose, one of the first responders to the scene, was killed in the incident.
During the line of questioning, Oregon Senator Ron Wyden repeatedly inquired about times where he believed the Secretary overstepped his authority. He asked if Kennedy pressured Monarez to preapprove a panel of committee members.
This question follows a Wall Street Journal op-ed where the former director wrote, “One of the troubling directives from that meeting more than a week ago: I was told to preapprove the recommendations of a vaccine advisory panel newly filled with people who have publicly expressed antivaccine rhetoric,” to which the secretary asserts that she lied about this event.
Senator Wyden shifted his focus to a committee change enforced by Kennedy. On June 9 of this year, all 17 members of the Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices (ACIP) were fired.
The senator claimed, “You replace them with non-experts, vaccine skeptics and conspiracy theorists. As a result, this critical advisory panel has lost scientific credibility.”
When asked if the American Academy of Pediatrics’ (AAP) warning that this change will cost lives was also false, the secretary responded that the organization’s biggest contributors were makers of vaccines and their opinions were essentially biased.
During the hearing, Kennedy also highlighted the removal of recommendations regarding fluoride concentration in water, applauding Florida and Utah’s removal of all fluoride from public drinking water.
He also made claims that the administration was focused on addressing issues related to childhood health and chronic conditions. However, in doing so, he reiterated his arguments that dyes in foods were a cause of autism.
The crux of the CDC upheaval by Kennedy centers around his personal vaccine skepticism. The recent shooting at the CDC was carried out by a man who believed the COVID-19 vaccine had made him depressed and suicidal, and former CDC employees believe Kennedy had a role to play in the shooter’s medical distrust.
Susan Monarez, who had been confirmed in late July of this year, was fired from her role as director of the CDC.. Following a 2023 law that required directors to face Senate approval, Monarez became the first CDC director approved by the Senate in a 51-47 vote. She became the first director to not hold a medical degree as CDC director since 1953 and was nominated by President Trump.
Monarez was removed from her role by the White House on Aug. 27th. Alongside her, four senior members of the CDC resigned in protest.
Kennedy highlighted in his written witness statement the benefits he’s seen from the “One Big Beautiful Bill,” pointing out the greater flexibility in spending from an individual’s Health Savings Account, as well as continued investment in rural healthcare (despite later pushback from senators). Long-term, he stated that they looked to reduce the cost of health insurance and were already speaking with insurance companies about reducing costs.