RFK Jr. is controversial due to his vaccine skepticism, but nearly half of Americans backed him for HHS secretary.

As HHS secretary, Kennedy has the authority, working with the FDA commissioner, to reorganize the agency without congressional approval. He says he wants to fully eliminate “entire departments” at the FDA, listing as a top target the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, which he says can’t be trusted to do its job.

On Tuesday night, Trump nominated Dr. Jay Bhattacharya to lead the National Institutes of Health, tapping an opponent of pandemic lockdowns and vaccine mandates to lead the nation's top medical research agency.