Senator Bill Cassidy voted with fellow Republicans on the Senate Finance Committee Tuesday morning to move forward the nomination of Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. for HHS secretary.
Tuesday morning, the Senate Finance Committee voted 14-13 to progress the nomination of Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. for HHS secretary to a floor vote of the entire Senate.
With Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) voting yes, the decision fell along party lines.
The Committee’s ranking member Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) spoke out against RFK Jr.’s nomination, referencing his stance on vaccines and saying he failed to show a “basic understanding” of Medicare and Medicaid programs, according to Forbes.
Original article published Feb. 4, 7:48 a.m.:
RFK Likely to Pass Committee Vote: Jefferies
Ahead of a Senate committee vote on Tuesday, analysts at Jefferies paint an encouraging picture for Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., whom the firm expects to make it through to consideration by the full Senate.
In a note to investors on Monday evening, the analysts said that Kennedy’s confirmation is “progressing on pace” and is likely to “pass to a full Senate discussion and vote.”
The Senate Finance Committee is scheduled to convene Tuesday to vote on Kennedy, whom President Donald Trump in November chose to head the Department of Health and Human Services. Over the course of two confirmatory hearings last week, Kennedy was grilled by several lawmakers regarding his anti-vaccine history, along with other contentious statements he’s made in the past.
In front of the Finance Committee, for example, Kennedy was accused by Senator Michael Bennet (D-CO) of “peddling half-truths.” Bennet pointed to a previous statement where the nominee called Lyme disease a military weapon. Fellow Democratic Senator Maggie Hassan (NH) said that confirming Kennedy posed “too much of a risk for our country.”
Members of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee raised similar issues during Kennedy’s second day of testimony. Senator Bill Cassidy (R-LA), who chairs the committee and also sits on the Finance Committee, expressed concern about confirming an HHS Secretary with a long track record of opposing vaccines, which have been proven to prevent several serious diseases and complications. Cassidy is a physician.
During the hearing, Cassidy referred to Kennedy as someone “who spent decades criticizing vaccines, and who’s financially vested in finding fault with vaccines,” and raised what he said was an important question for determining his vote: “Can he change his attitudes and approach now that he’ll have the most important position influencing vaccine policy in the United States?”
Cassidy is in a “crucial” position, according to the Jefferies note on Monday. “All eyes are on Cassidy,” the firm wrote, pointing out that the Republicans’ majority in the Finance Committee is slim—14 to the Democrats’ 13—and that Cassidy’s vote will be instrumental to moving Kennedy forward to the full Senate panel.
Still, the analysts recognize that Cassidy himself is in a bind. “Despite pressing RFK hard on vaccines in Thursday’s HELP committee hearing, Cassidy is facing primary challengers in [Louisiana], criticism from the GOP for his public and existing hesitation on RFK, and was one of 7 GOP Senators to vote to impeach President Trump.” All these factors could push the senator to “ultimately fall in line” with his party.
Looking ahead to a potential confirmation, the Jefferies analysts wrote that a Kennedy-led HHS could result in “the most politicized FDA to date in modern era,” though they still believe that the agency “will act on science and logic.” To head the FDA, Trump has chosen physician and COVID-19 policies critic Marty Makary, whom Jefferies said has a “history of reasonable action.” Makary has yet to be confirmed by the Senate.
“We think most therapeutic and disease areas should be OK,” the Jefferies note continues, though certain areas—such as vaccines and other spaces that could be a political target for the Trump administration, like HIV—could face potential “headline risks.”
Correction (Feb. 4): An earlier version of this story stated that the Senate Finance Committee would vote on RFK Jr.'s nomination on Wednesday. They will vote on Tuesday. BioSpace regrets the error.
