If confirmed as Health and Human Services Secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. would control the world’s largest public health agency, and its $1.7 trillion budget.

Kennedy has pledged to "return our health agencies to their rich tradition of gold-standard, evidence-based science."

Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. has a condition called spasmodic dysphonia, which causes the sound of a raspy voice due to spasms in the vocal cords.

Public health experts, physicians, and scientists responded with fury and disgust to the news that Donald Trump will nominate anti-vaccine activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to be the secretary of Health and Human Services.

Health stocks slumped on Friday as Wall Street weighed the impact that prominent vaccine skeptic Robert F. Kennedy Jr. could have on the industry after President-elect Donald Trump nominated him to lead the nation’s health and medical research agencies.

Kennedy has been criticized for making false medical claims. He has also vowed to purge the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., and his wife Cheryl Hines arrive before President-elect Donald Trump speaks during an America First Policy Institute gala at his Mar-a-Lago estate, Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024, in Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

President-elect Donald Trump has picked a prominent vaccine skeptic to lead the nation’s sprawling public health apparatus

"We have a generational opportunity to bring together the greatest minds in science, medicine, industry, and government to put an end to the chronic disease epidemic," Kennedy said.

Kennedy Jr. attends a campaign event for Republican presidential nominee and former U.S. President Donald Trump in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S. November 1, 2024. REUTERS/Joel Angel Juarez/File Photo LONDON (Reuters) - President-elect Donald Trump said on Thursday he has selected Robert F.