Robert Kennedy Jr. speaks in front of former President Donald Trump during a campaign rally at Madison Square Garden in New York.
AP/October 27, 2024
Every new presidential administration comes with policy changes, and the upcoming second administration of President-elect Donald Trump and his proposed Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will dramatically change the public health landscape. There is a possibility.
Kennedy, a former political opponent of President Trump, became a close ally of Trump in the final months of the 2024 campaign and was nominated to the Department of Health and Human Services post shortly after the election. The department is home to the National Institutes of Health, the Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
Kennedy’s health views and policy initiatives could have far-reaching implications for public health, including policy in Illinois. kennedy often encouraged me Healthy food consumption for Americans – a goal the Illinois Democratic Party can support.
But Kennedy has other views that conflict with science.
in 2023 Fox News Interviewhe said he believed the mistake had been debunked. theory That vaccines cause autism. He also proposed blocking fluoridation of public water, a public health measure that supports dental health. According to the Illinois Department of Public Health.
Mr. Kennedy has not received a warm welcome from Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin, who would vote for Mr. Kennedy’s nomination if it advances to the Senate floor.
“This is one of the most important and sensitive appointments a president can make,” Durbin said at an unrelated news conference in Chicago in November. “Robert F. Kennedy Jr. may be qualified in some areas, but he is totally unqualified for this job. He spread bogus science and outlandish theories left and right, and It’s gotten a lot of attention. I’m worried that this guy will bring the same ideas to the management of this life-or-death institution, and it will be a disaster.”
If Kennedy becomes Secretary of Health and Human Services, his administration’s efforts could put Illinois’ health care policy at odds with federal guidance in some areas. But the state may find a partner in Kennedy as Congress considers food regulations.
fluorine in waterr
On January 20th, President Trump is scheduled to issue a nationwide advisory. A water system that removes fluoride from public water. Fluoride is an industrial waste product linked to arthritis, bone fractures, bone cancer, lower IQ, neurodevelopmental disorders, and thyroid disease. president…
— Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (@RobertKennedyJr) November 2, 2024
If President Kennedy has his way, the Trump administration’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention would order public water systems to stop adding fluoridation to public drinking water on the very day Trump takes office, January 20. The information paper reported that a recommendation would be made. social media posts Kennedy said this a few days before the election.
“Fluoride is an industrial waste,” Kennedy said, arguing that fluoride causes bone and nerve problems and other problems.
Fluoride is a natural mineral often used in toothpastes because it keeps teeth strong and has benefits for dental health. According to the CDC. The installation in the water supply has been named by the authorities as one of the following. 10 Great Public Health Achievements of the Last Century.
As for Kennedy’s claim that it causes health problems, 1 National Toxicology Program study found a possible association between fluoride concentrations of 1.5 milligrams per liter or higher and lower IQ in children. However, the researchers noted that more research is needed before drawing concrete conclusions. According to the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, Illinois water systems maintain fluoride levels at 0.7 ppm and are required to notify customers when fluoride levels exceed 2 milligrams per liter. There is.
One report says nearly all Illinois residents consume fluoride in their drinking water. 2023 CDC Report. The annual report found that 90% of the state’s water systems use fluoride. Together they serve 98% of the state’s population.
Fluoride is required in Illinois drinking water under a 1967 state law, which was amended in 2016 to reduce the amount of fluoride that water systems must use. The 2016 law says the levels “must comply with recommendations for optimal fluoridation of community water levels proposed and adopted by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.”
Additional regulations set by state pollution control boards also control fluoride levels in water. It’s unclear how Illinois’ use of fluoride will change if federal recommendations change.
“Illinois EPA cannot speculate on what actions would be taken if such a decision were made at the federal level, although state regulations may be more stringent than federal regulations; We cannot let up on that,” agency spokeswoman Kim Biggs said in an email.
vaccine
Bottom line: I’m not going to take away anyone’s vaccine. I just want to make sure that every American knows the safety profile, risk profile and effectiveness of each vaccine. that’s it. pic.twitter.com/JD8eyenO5H
— Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (@RobertKennedyJr) October 15, 2024
Kennedy is known for being a vaccine skeptic and spreading misinformation about vaccines. It’s unclear what he will do about vaccines as health secretary. he has said in the last few weeks He didn’t take away vaccines. But he is pushing for significant deregulation and changes at HHS and its agencies that could impact future vaccine approvals.
The Illinois Department of Public Health mandates a schedule of 12 vaccines that children must receive, with parents providing their child’s school with proof of immunization for a specific vaccine by a specific grade level. It stipulates that. College students and medical workplaces also have different vaccination requirements.
Illinois’ school vaccine policy is established at the state level based on the recommendations of the CDC Advisory Committee on Vaccines.
The state’s history of requiring vaccinations in schools dates back more than a century. The Illinois State Board of Health first required smallpox vaccination for children attending school in 1894. Ultimately, the World Health Organization declared smallpox eradicated in 1977 after decades of smallpox vaccination.
The extensive vaccine requirements that apply today were mandated by the General Assembly beginning in 1967.
The State Board of Health, a division of IDPH, is primarily responsible for changes to Illinois’ vaccine requirements, even if recommendations change at the federal level. IDPH said the change in requirements was recommended by the Board of Health after a public hearing and is based on recommendations issued by a CDC review panel. Each country is responsible for setting specific requirements for vaccines. According to the CDC.
Some common vaccines, such as those for hepatitis A, influenza and COVID-19, are not required to attend Illinois schools. CDC recommended vaccination schedule. However, Illinois law requires school districts to provide parents with information about flu vaccinations.
State law also allows parents and guardians to skip vaccinating their children for religious or medical reasons.
ingredients
Another of President Kennedy’s priorities is establishing a healthy diet to combat obesity and chronic disease. He is calling for tighter regulation of food ingredients in a pledge to crack down on ultra-processed foods and ingredients linked to health problems.
“Given the interest of the current candidates, perhaps something like this could be on the table at the federal level,” Jamie Chriqui, senior associate dean and professor at the University of Illinois Chicago School of Public Health, told Capitol News. -Told Illinois. “Typically what we see is that unless there are advocates who are interested in making changes at the federal level, they are first tested at the state and local level before being pushed at the federal level. .”
Despite the controversy surrounding Kennedy, the Trump administration may partner with Illinois on ingredient limits. This spring, the state Senate passed a bipartisan bill that would ban brominated vegetable oils, red dye No. 3, propylparaben, and potassium bromate used in food manufacturing from being used in food sold in Illinois starting in 2028. It passed with a majority vote. It is currently stalled in the House of Representatives.
“I agree with the science, and in this case it appears RFK agrees as well,” said the bill’s sponsor, Sen. Willie Preston, a Chicago Democrat. “We’re aligned. If it’s possible to move this issue forward, I’m happy to work with him and certainly have a responsibility to do it here in Illinois, but also across this country. intend to.”
Preston said Kennedy is “problematic” on other issues, but on the issue of food additives, Kennedy’s appointment moves the country toward more regulation to make food healthier. He said that he believes this shows that.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration President Kennedy wants cuts In size and scope, Consider canceling Approval of brominated vegetable oils. All of these ingredients have been linked to health problems ranging from cancer to neurological problems, Chriqui said.
California has already cracked down on some artificial ingredients targeted by Illinois lawmakers, but food and business groups, including in Illinois, oppose such regulations. Criqui pointed out: FDA bans artificial trans fats As proof of this, food manufacturers can make changes in response to government requests.
“There was a similar backlash, and when the FDA finally issued federal regulations on trans fats, manufacturers were able to comply,” Chriqui said.
Although the FDA plays an important role in shaping federal food regulations, states maintain similar authority, Chriqui said. This does not mean that President Kennedy would be a good idea to abolish parts of the FDA, but rather that states have historically been the primary driver of nutrition policy changes, such as regulating trans fats and food in schools. emphasized.
“States like California and Illinois, which have a history of leading on important food safety regulations, can continue to demonstrate how science-backed policies can have a positive impact,” Chriqui said. said.
President Kennedy has also suggested reforms to school lunch programs, which are administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. A spokesperson for the Illinois State Board of Education said ISBE has received four grants from HHS, but they are not related to the school lunch program.
• capitol news illinois is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news service that distributes state government coverage to hundreds of news organizations across the state. Funded primarily by the Illinois Publishing Foundation and the Robert R. McCormick Foundation.
