Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Foe of Drug Makers and Regulators, Is Poised to Wield New Power

Jerome Adams, who served as Surgeon General in President-elect Donald J. Trump’s first administration, as 12,000 public health professionals gathered in Minneapolis last week for the annual meeting of the American Public Health Association. The doctor issued a sharp warning about Mr. Robert. F. Kennedy Jr.

“If RFK were to have a significant impact on the incoming administration, it could further undermine people’s willingness to stay informed about recommended vaccines.” Dr. Adams said. “I’m concerned about the impact on our nation’s health, our economy, and global security.”

Now, Kennedy, a vocal vaccine skeptic, is in a position to influence a wide range of policies. Mr. Trump’s landslide electoral victory with Mr. Kennedy on his side was, in the eyes of his supporters, not only a mandate but also a rejection of the public health institutions that had long alienated Mr. Kennedy.

As an independent presidential candidate and a Trump surrogate, Kennedy upended the country’s agricultural system and public health bureaucracy, effectively eradicating entire swaths of the regulatory state in the name of rooting out “cronyism” and corruption. I vowed to gut it.

After Trump was first elected in 2016, Kennedy told reporters that Trump had promised to chair a vaccine committee, but that never happened. Mr. Kennedy now has much more power, rallying Mr. Trump’s supporters. The president-elect has hinted that Kennedy will play a role in the new administration, recently saying he would have Kennedy “drive hard on the health front,” but declined to specify what that meant. It is not specifically stated.

There is also speculation that Trump will create a “health czar” in the White House to guide the president on public health issues. Kennedy visited Mar-a-Lago on Wednesday and spoke with Trump insiders about public health challenges, according to a person familiar with the transition.