RFK Jr. report calls for more scrutiny of vaccines, autism
WASHINGTON—The Trump administration directed the nation’s public health and environmental agencies to prioritize investigations into vaccine injuries, prescription drug use and autism’s causes in its latest “Make America Healthy Again” (Maha) report released on Tuesday.
The 20-page report, overseen by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., echoes many of the talking points Kennedy and those in his wide-ranging and politically diverse “Maha” movement have united around. The document promises to put an end to childhood diseases and to make children healthier, but does not lay out regulatory changes to ensure an overhaul of Americans’ health.
Among the report’s recommendations is a call for more rigorous government investigations into vaccine injuries.
‘Recast’
Kennedy promised to “recast the entire program” for investigating vaccine injuries as he joined administration officials to unveil the Maha report. Currently, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention investigates injuries that are reported by individuals or providers.
“They will be welcomed and we will learn everything we can about them so we can improve the safety of these products,” Kennedy said of people who report vaccine injuries. He added that doctors are not currently compensated for filing complaints for vaccine injuries.
Those who have spent decades researching autism have found no single cause. Besides genetics, scientists have identified various possible factors, including the age of a child’s father, the mother’s weight, and whether she had diabetes or was exposed to certain chemicals.
Misleading ads
Trump ordered his first action as a result of the Maha report’s recommendations on Tuesday evening, signing a memorandum to beef up enforcement of pharmaceutical ads that run across TVs, websites and social media accounts.
Administration officials said during a call on Tuesday that they would be sending “hundreds” of letters to pharmaceutical companies that have run misleading ads.
The Maha report addressed a number of other issues, including ultraprocessed food consumption, water quality, fluoride and the use of prescription drugs in children.
Agencies, including the health department and the Department of Justice, should increase enforcement and oversight of prescription drug ads, especially those published by social media influencers and telehealth companies, the report says.
