HHS pick Robert F. Kennedy Jr. clears final hurdle before Senate confirmation vote

WASHINGTON — Health and Human Services Secretary-designate Robert F.Kennedy Jr.

cleared the final hurdle before his expected Senate confirmation in a party-line vote Wednesday after quelling Republican concerns about his longstanding opposition to vaccines and other conspiracy theories.The Senate voted 53-47 to end debate on Kennedy’s nomination, following public statements of support from some GOP senators who had been on the fence about President Trump’s pick.Republican aides and sources close to the confirmation fight have indicated he will receive final approval, though he’s been labeled a “slight wild card.”Sen.Susan Collins (R-Maine) revealed Tuesday that she was ready to back RFK Jr.

“after extensive public and private questioning and a thorough examination of his nomination” — despite being one of three Republicans who tried to tank Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s confirmation.“He told me he believed in the efficacy of the polio vaccine and said he would help restore Americans’ confidence in vaccines and our health agencies,” Collins said in a statement, referring to the longtime environmental lawyer’s repeated claims about autism being linked to immunizations.Collins also said she was “encouraged” that Kennedy would be meeting regularly with Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee Chairman Bill Cassidy (R-La.), a physician who was on the fence for weeks about the vaccine skeptic.“Based on Mr.Kennedy’s assurances about vaccines and his platform to positively influence Americans’ health, it is my consideration that he will get this done,” Cassidy said in a floor speech last week.

“I want Mr.Kennedy to succeed in making America healthy again.”The Louisiana and Maine GOP senators are both facing reelection in 2026, which complicated the decision.Another early opponent, Sen.

Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), had warned Kennedy to “steer clear of even the appearance of association” with his past e...