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RFK Jr. Got Rid of an ‘Alphabet Soup’ of Health Agencies. Now, Congress Gets a Say
Since taking the helm of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) in February, Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has moved quickly to shrink the agency, firing thousands of agency staffers. He’s canceled billions in grants to universities and public health departments, purged some leadership and shaken up the norms of the scientific review process.
Both the firings and grant cancellations have been challenged in court. A federal judge has temporarily paused the staff cuts for several weeks. Kennedy heads to Capitol Hill Wednesday to testify before lawmakers for the first time as HHS Secretary.
“I think some of the cuts are necessary — I wish they’d learn a little bit more about the department before they do it,” says one of Kennedy’s predecessors, Tommy Thompson, who served as health secretary under President George W. Bush. “I’m not one of those that’s going to criticize the administration or Bobby Kennedy for cutting back, because I think it’s necessary in government at all levels. “I hope that they don’t cut programs that are absolutely necessary for public health,” he adds.
HHS, FDA Initiate Comprehensive Review of Nutrients in Infant Formula
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration reported:
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) today announced the next steps in Operation Stork Speed — a groundbreaking initiative to ensure the safety, reliability, and nutritional adequacy of infant formula for American families. The FDA issued a Request for Information (RFI) to begin the nutrient review process required by law for infant formula. Currently, infant formula must meet minimum and maximum levels of certain nutrients.
While the FDA regularly reviews individual nutrient requirements for infant formula, this will be the first comprehensive review since 1998. “Operation Stork Speed brings radical transparency to ingredients in infant formula and puts science front and center,” said HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. “Every child has a fundamental right to a healthy start. We’re giving parents the truth and the tools to make that happen. You can’t Make America Healthy Again if we don’t fix what nourishes our youngest and most vulnerable Americans.”
Through the RFI, the FDA is seeking public input to help determine whether existing nutrient requirements should be revised based on the latest scientific data, including international. The agency also welcomes data on potential adjustments to existing minimum or maximum levels, recommendations for additional nutrients to consider, and how such changes may improve health outcomes.
FDA and NIH Announce New Food and Nutrition Research Agenda
On May 9, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced they’ll collaborate on a new agenda for nutrition research that will prioritize understanding how ultra-processed foods and food additives harm Americans’ health. FDA and NIH are sub-agencies of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Their joint Nutrition Regulatory Science Program will play a key role in Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s Make America Healthy Again plan to focus on preventing chronic disease, according to a news release.
“Nutrition has always been a priority at NIH. By teaming up with the FDA, we’re taking a major step toward answering big questions about how food affects health — and turning that science into smarter, more effective policy,” NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya said in the release.
The news comes less than a month after leading ultra-processed foods researcher Kevin Hall left his position at NIH, citing an inability to pursue “unbiased science” under the new leadership. Hall was actively working on studies that experts across the field considered to be the most groundbreaking, comprehensive research to date on why highly engineered foods contribute to a range of health issues. He said freezes on purchasing and hiring also stymied his work.
Wellness CEO Files Ethics Complaint Against Top RFK Jr. Adviser
An internal battle has emerged inside the ‘Make America Healthy Again’ movement, with the CEO of a supplements company and a top adviser to Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (RFK Jr.) leveling accusations against each other that include making threats of retribution, conflicts of interest and leaking false information to far-right activist Laura Loomer.
At the center of the fight are Peter Gillooly, CEO of The Wellness Company, and Calley Means, who in addition to serving as an adviser to RFK Jr. is the co-founder of a health care payments company and the brother of Casey Means, who was recently nominated to be the next surgeon general by President Donald Trump.
In a formal complaint to the Office of the Special Counsel and other agencies filed Saturday and obtained by POLITICO, Gillooly accuses Calley Means of abusing his position at HHS and violating the law prohibiting conflict of interest in government services by threatening to involve Kennedy and National Institutes of Health Director Jay Bhattacharya in the dispute.
Amid the Milwaukee Lead Crisis, a Laid-off CDC Scientist Volunteered His Expertise. It Wasn’t so Simple
In mid-April, an unusual offer arrived in the Milwaukee health commissioner’s inbox. “I’m writing as a concerned private citizen to offer my support in Milwaukee’s ongoing response to the lead contamination in your schools,” it said. “While I regret that I’m no longer able to assist in my former government role, my commitment to this public health crisis remains steadfast.” The commissioner, Michael Totoraitis, could have used some help. His department’s regular work hadn’t stopped.
In a few days, there were two restaurants to close temporarily, one for rodent reasons, another for cleanliness violations, a tuberculosis case whose contacts needed tracing, and the countless other largely invisible tasks involved in forestalling public health messes before they occurred. But mostly there was the gargantuan job of figuring out which of the district’s 68,000 public school students were likeliest to have been exposed to lead dust and most urgently needed testing and follow-up.
That was what the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s lead poisoning experts had been helping with when their office was slashed in the Trump administration’s mass federal layoffs in early April.
