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Ongoing story / Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

RFK Jr.'s confirmation as health secretary

Overview · reviewed October 28, 2026

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a vaccine skeptic and former independent presidential candidate who endorsed Donald Trump, was confirmed as health and human services secretary in February 2025.[1] His nomination alarmed health professionals and more than 70 Nobel laureates, who urged the Senate to reject him,[2][3] and he won confirmation after Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy, a doctor, said Kennedy had given him assurances on vaccines.[4] What he did as secretary is followed in the arc on his vaccine overhaul.

Read the timeline

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His nomination alarmed health professionals and more than 70 Nobel laureates, who urged the Senate to reject him,[2][3] and he won confirmation after Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy, a doctor, said Kennedy had given him assurances on vaccines.[4] What he did as secretary is followed in the arc on his vaccine overhaul.

Coverage over time

Share of tracked outlets · monthly average of weekly shares (UTC)

Nov 2024: average weekly share 14% (left 4%, center 6%, right 3%), from 3 of 3 weeksDec 2024: average weekly share 3% (left 1%, center 1%, right 1%), from 5 of 5 weeksJan 2025: average weekly share 8% (left 2%, center 4%, right 2%), from 4 of 4 weeksFeb 2025: average weekly share 12% (left 3%, center 6%, right 3%), from 4 of 4 weeksMar 2025: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 5 of 5 weeksApr 2025: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 4 of 4 weeksMay 2025: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 4 of 4 weeksJun 2025: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 5 of 5 weeksJul 2025: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 4 of 4 weeksAug 2025: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 4 of 4 weeksSep 2025: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 5 of 5 weeksOct 2025: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 4 of 4 weeksNov 2025: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 4 of 4 weeksDec 2025: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 5 of 5 weeksJan 2026: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 4 of 4 weeksFeb 2026: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 4 of 4 weeksMar 2026: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 5 of 5 weeksApr 2026: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 4 of 4 weeksMay 2026: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 4 of 4 weeksJun 2026: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 5 of 5 weeksJul 2026: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 4 of 4 weeksAug 2026: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 5 of 5 weeksSep 2026: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 4 of 4 weeksOct 2026: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 4 of 4 weeksNov 2026: average weekly share 2% (left 1%, center 1%, right under 1%), from 2 of 2 weeks, so far

LeftCenterRight

Each bar is the share of the outlets on our Left / Center / Right rating scale that we tracked publishing that week which carried reporting on this story, split by the outlets' ratings. Over more than two years each bar is a month: the average of that month's weekly shares, so the shape stays readable. The weekly table below keeps every week. We track more outlets now than in the archive, so a share keeps earlier and later weeks comparable. An outlet counts once a week however much it published, and outlets in one ownership or syndication group count as one on each side they appear on. A rating describes the outlet, not the report. A gap means no such reports were collected that week, not that nothing was reported anywhere. Weeks run Monday to Sunday in UTC, so a report published on a Sunday evening in US Eastern time counts in the next week. 10 more outlets off the scale (not rated, or outside the left-right graphs) also reported; they are not in this chart. See them.

Weekly counts, outlets and reports (10 weeks with coverage)
Outlets on the rating scale that carried this story each week, of the outlets tracked that week, newest first
Week of (UTC)LeftCenterRightOf trackedShareReceipts
Nov 9, 2026 (so far)612321 of 4704%
Feb 10, 202515272163 of 21429%
Feb 3, 20251119434 of 19018%
Jan 27, 202519291058 of 22326%
Jan 20, 20251348 of 2264%
Jan 6, 20251203 of 2211%
Dec 16, 2024413825 of 22611%
Dec 9, 20243328 of 2084%
Nov 18, 20243306 of 2253%
Nov 11, 202424381880 of 21138%

Latest coverage

The newest reporting in this story's record.

  1. Nov 12, 2026 · first reported · Headline from KVIA El Paso

    Top Democrat will investigate whether RFK Jr. lied to Congress

Background

Trump announced Kennedy as his pick on November 14, 2024, and shares of major vaccine makers plunged.[5][6] It emerged that a lawyer affiliated with Kennedy had petitioned the Food and Drug Administration about the polio vaccine, which Trump called "the greatest thing."[7] Kennedy met senators on Capitol Hill in December,[8] and ethics filings in January showed him distancing himself from his anti-vaccine work.[9]

At his confirmation hearings in late January, Democrats grilled him over his views on vaccines,[10] and he struggled to answer questions about Medicare and Medicaid.[11] Cassidy announced his support after saying Kennedy had given him assurances,[4] and the Senate confirmed Kennedy in mid-February.[1]

Supporting stories (11)
  1. Senate confirms RFK Jr. as Health and Human Services secretary - Boston News, Weather, Sports
  2. More than 15,000 doctors sign letter urging Senate to reject RFK Jr. as health secretary
  3. RFK Jr. Cabinet Nomination: Dozens Of Nobel Winners Urge Senate To Reject Trump’s HHS Pick
  4. Senate Finance Committee advances RFK Jr.'s nomination to be Trump's health secretary
  5. Trump picks RFK Jr., anti-vaccine activist, for Health and Human Services secretary
  6. Vaccine maker stocks fall after conspiracy theory-spreading RFK Jr. tapped to lead health department
  7. Kennedy says he’s ‘all for’ polio vaccine as GOP senators raise questions about his views
  8. RFK Jr. meets with senators as questions swirl about Trump's pick to lead health agency - The Daily Reporter
  9. RFK Jr. says he's resigned from anti-vaccine nonprofit as he seeks nation's top health official job
  10. RFK Jr. HHS Confirmation: Kennedy Says He Will Give Up Stake In Vaccine Lawsuit
  11. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. struggles to answer questions on Medicare and Medicaid at confirmation hearing

The full record

Each date is when an update was first reported.

All 17 recorded updates

November 2026

  1. Top Democrat will investigate whether RFK Jr. lied to CongressHeadline from KVIA El Paso · 13 outlets

February 2025

  1. Senate confirms RFK Jr. as Health and Human Services secretary - Boston News, Weather, SportsHeadline from WHDH Boston · 68 outlets
  2. Senate panel advances Robert F. Kennedy Jr. nomination to become health secretaryHeadline from UPI · 9 outlets
  3. Senate Finance Committee advances RFK Jr.'s nomination to be Trump's health secretaryHeadline from ABC 7 Los Angeles · 28 outlets

January 2025

  1. RFK Jr. HHS Confirmation: Kennedy Says He Will Give Up Stake In Vaccine LawsuitHeadline from Forbes · 54 outlets
  2. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. struggles to answer questions on Medicare and Medicaid at confirmation hearingHeadline from The Columbian · 14 outlets
  3. 5 takeaways from the confirmation hearings for RFK Jr., Gabbard and PatelHeadline from NBC News · 8 outlets
  4. Trump's health secretary pick, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., faces confirmation hearingHeadline from NPR · 10 outlets
  5. RFK Jr. says he's resigned from anti-vaccine nonprofit as he seeks nation's top health official jobHeadline from KOB 4 · 7 outlets
  6. More than 15,000 doctors sign letter urging Senate to reject RFK Jr. as health secretaryHeadline from NBC Los Angeles · 4 outlets

December 2024

  1. RFK Jr. meets with senators as questions swirl about Trump's pick to lead health agency - The Daily ReporterHeadline from Green Field Reporter · 16 outlets
  2. Kennedy says he’s ‘all for’ polio vaccine as GOP senators raise questions about his viewsHeadline from KVIA El Paso · 13 outlets
  3. RFK Jr. Cabinet Nomination: Dozens Of Nobel Winners Urge Senate To Reject Trump’s HHS PickHeadline from Forbes · 6 outlets

November 2024

  1. Caroline Kennedy, a U.S. ambassador, says her cousin RFK Jr. holds ‘dangerous' views on vaccinesHeadline from NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth · 7 outlets
  2. Jake Tapper Tells CNN Viewers ‘I Hope You Like Measles’ While Reporting on Trump Picking RFK Jr. for Health SecretaryHeadline from Variety · 5 outlets
  3. Vaccine maker stocks fall after conspiracy theory-spreading RFK Jr. tapped to lead health departmentHeadline from New York Post · 13 outlets
  4. Trump picks RFK Jr., anti-vaccine activist, for Health and Human Services secretaryHeadline from NBC10 Philadelphia · 80 outlets

Coverage & sources

Read the reports, see how much was collected over time, or compare outlets by political leaning.

Coverage & sources →