RFK Jr.’s Nomination Poses a Threat to the Health and Well-Being of Mainers and Families Across America
Yesterday, health care experts and State Representatives joined Protect Our Care Maine in Augusta to sound the alarm on Donald Trump’s nomination of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS). Speakers discussed how RFK Jr.’s complete lack of qualifications and radical views on vaccinations and health care are a threat to the health and well-being of Mainers and families all across America.
RFK Jr. has absolutely no place leading our health care system. As HHS Secretary, RFK Jr. would prioritize his own interests over the needs of the American people. Not only does he oppose lifesaving vaccinations, but he has also downplayed the severity of infectious diseases and plans to gut funding from the FDA and NIH, which will halt progress of essential research on lifesaving drug and vaccine development. Working families deserve access to affordable, high-quality health care and an HHS leader who trusts science and is committed to strengthening public health.
HEADLINES
CBS 13 Portland: ‘Utterly Unqualified:’ Maine Groups Rallies Against RFK Jr. Nomination as DHHS Secretary
- “Advocates and Maine lawmakers say RFK Jr. is ‘utterly unqualified’ to serve as Secretary for the Department of Health and Human Services. Health care professionals joined state reps and the group Protect Our Care Maine today in Augusta. They say President-Elect Trump’s nominee poses a threat to Mainers’ healthcare. They pointed to his history of promoting anti-vaccination views and what cutting funding for infectious diseases could mean for Maine.”
Fox 23 Portland: Advocates Express Concerns Over RFK Jr. Nomination
- “Health officials have expressed concerns about [RFK Jr.’s] views on vaccinations and a skepticism on funding for research on infectious diseases, wondering what that could mean in the future for people’s health and safety… At the news conference, health officials called on Maine Senators Susan Collins and Angus King to reject RFK Jr.’s nomination.”
Maine Public: Protect Our Care Maine Urges U.S. Senators to Oppose RFK Jr. Nomination
- “Deborah Deatrick, former vice president of community health at MaineHealth who also served as director of the state office of dental health, said she’s concerned about Kennedy’s statement that the new administration would recommend removing fluoride from public water systems… Deatrick was joined at the Augusta press conference by Democratic State Representatives Dan Shagoury and Anne Graham, who emphasized what they said are the dangers of Kennedy’s comments opposing vaccines.”
Maine Morning Star: State Lawmakers Say Health Secretary Nominee RFK Jr. Would Threaten Public Health in Maine
- “Two Maine state representatives are raising concern about Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s nomination to serve as health secretary under President-elect Donald Trump, highlighting his statements against vaccinations, water fluoridation and other common sense public health measures… The pair, who both sit on the Legislature’s Health and Human Services Committee, criticized Kennedy’s lack of medical or public health experience, plans to cut funding to research organizations such as the National Institutes of Health, and warned Mainers that his appointment would have adverse effects on the state’s public health.”
Spectrum News: Group of Maine Lawmakers Protest Potential RFK Jr. Cabinet Nomination
- “Critics took aim Tuesday at Kennedy’s anti-vaccination beliefs, along with his contention that municipal water supplies should not be fluoridated… Rep. Anne Graham called Kennedy ‘inexperienced and completely unqualified.’ He has never worked in a government position, she said, has never run a large organization, is not a doctor, not a nurse and holds no medical degree… Graham said she genuinely worries about extreme measures such as vaccines being outlawed under Kennedy.”