HIRONO: “One would hope the president’s nominee to lead such an important department would be a level-headed individual guided by science and data. Instead, Donald Trump has nominated the total opposite, Robert Kennedy Jr. Mr. Kennedy is an anti-vaccine activist who peddles and profits from conspiracy theories and has a troubling history of misconduct. In his confirmation hearings, Mr. Kennedy appeared not to know the difference between Medicare and Medicaid, essential programs that 66 million and 72 million people, respectively, rely on for access to health care. Mr. Kennedy purports to be a proponent of bodily autonomy when it comes to vaccines, as if we know better than scientists about the efficacy and safety of medical treatments.
But, Mr. Kennedy’s commitment to bodily autonomy suddenly flies out the window when it comes to women’s right to control our own bodies. He has shown he will do Donald Trump’s bidding in his war on women and our freedom. Where’s our bodily autonomy? As they work to reverse the FDA’s approval of mifepristone, which has been used safely for medication abortion for more than 20 years. So much for bodily autonomy. And it’s clear Mr. Kennedy will be guided not by science, but by the conspiracy theories he’s pursued for decades, on vaccines, raw milk, stem cell treatment and much more. Vaccines are a modern miracle that have saved an estimated 154 million lives and enabled us to all but eradicate diseases like polio and smallpox. But due to the activism of conspiracy theorists like Mr. Kennedy, public trust in vaccines have eroded, endangering countless lives and threatening the herd immunity that protects us all.”
