Latest news with #RobertF.Kennedy
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
RFK Jr.'s MAHA Report Included Lots of Bogus Studies
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy's much-anticipated Make America Healthy Again report is laden with errors and some of the cited authors said their 'studies' don't even exist, according to NOTUS. The 73-page document is the product of a presidential commission led by Kennedy to address the alarming rise in chronic diseases among American children. 'The initial mission of the Commission shall be to advise and assist the President on how best to exercise his authority to address the childhood chronic disease crisis,' the mission statement reads. The Trump administration proudly held the report up as 'a clear, evidence-based foundation for the policy interventions, institutional reforms, and societal shifts needed to reverse course.' This was despite some insiders being freaked out as to what the finished product would look like. A new article examining the report says it is laced with errors as trivial as broken links, all the way to misrepresented and even made-up research. The MAHA study cites over 500 works to support its assertions on issues ranging from vaccine safety to the dangers of ultra-processed foods. Seven of these citations don't even exist as real research, NOTUS reported. 'The paper cited is not a real paper that I or my colleagues were involved with,' one expert, epidemiologist Katherine Keyes, told the title. She was linked to a study on anxiety in adolescents. The MAHA report states that the study is from the 12th issue of the 176th edition of the journal JAMA Pediatrics. It isn't. No such study with that title exists in the 176th edition. Virginia Commonwealth University, where psychiatric researcher Robert L. Findling works, confirmed that a study about 'psychotropic medications for youth' was not authored by him. Another study about mental health medication in children appeared to have a completely made-up ADHD researcher, according to NOTUS. Likewise, pediatric pulmonologist Harold J. Farber denied writing a study with his name on it: 'Overprescribing of oral corticosteroids for children with asthma.' The document also wildly misconstrues some research. In one section, it states that mental health medication is less effective than therapy alone and cites Joanne McKenzie, a biostatistics professor at an Australian university and her team. 'We did not include psychotherapy in our review,' the author told NOTUS. She continued: 'We only compared the effectiveness of (new generation) antidepressants against each other, and against placebo.' 'The conclusions in the report are not accurate and the journal reference is incorrect,' another researcher, Mariana G. Figueiro, said. She added that she has some research that would have worked, making the decision to seemingly cherry-pick non-related studies even more puzzling. 'I was not aware of the choice, or else I would have suggested one of the other ones.' Sources previously told The Wall Street Journal that the report was largely shaped by Kennedy adviser Calley Means, who co-wrote a book on the dangers of pesticides with his sister, new Trump surgeon general nominee Dr. Casey Means. The Department of Health & Human Services did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Axios
a day ago
- Health
- Axios
CDC contradicts RFK Jr. on COVID vaccine for kids
The Centers for Disease Control is recommending that children over six months old can get COVID shots after a consultation with a medical provider, contradicting HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy's push to drop the shots for healthy kids. Why it matters: An update the CDC posted online late Thursday adds a new wrinkle to shifting federal recommendations on the shots, and Kennedy's efforts to do away with a COVID booster strategy for healthy children. State of play: The CDC now says healthy from six months to 17 years old may get COVID vaccines but that decision should be "informed by the clinical judgment of a healthcare provider and personal preference and circumstances." Kennedy said in a video posted to X on Tuesday that CDC would no longer recommend the shots for healthy kids and healthy pregnant women. The new CDC vaccine schedule contains no recommendation on COVID vaccine for healthy pregnant women. The CDC previously recommended that kids should get one or more doses of the 2024-2025 version of the COVID shot without a mention of a consultation with a doctor. It also recommended that healthy pregnant women get the shots. Not all CDC webpages have been updated as of Friday afternoon. One page on vaccine recommendations in pregnancy that appears to have been last updated last year states still has the old guidance that pregnant women should be vaccinated against COVID. HHS did not immediately respond to comment. The agency told the Washington Post that it is "restoring the doctor-patient relationship" under Kennedy. Zoom in: The recommendation for shared clinical decision making on COVID shots for kids allows for open conversation between patients and providers about what's best for an individual, according to Richard Hughes, a partner at law firm Epstein Becker Green and a vaccine law expert. But that recommendation is hard to implement in practice, he added. Health insurers don't always cover vaccines in this category. "Based on my collective observations of payer coverage of vaccines, the bottom line is expect variability in coverage, prior authorization and out-of-pocket, all of which will discourage uptake," Hughes wrote in an email Friday. What they're saying: The American Academy of Pediatrics expressed relief on Friday that the vaccine schedule preserves families' ability to obtain COVID vaccines, if they wish. "However, the deeply flawed process to reach the recommendation raises serious concerns about the stability of the nation's immunization infrastructure and commitment by federal leaders to make sure families can access critical immunizations," Susan Kressly, president of the organization, said in a statement.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Opinion - For members of Congress, MAHA isn't just great policy — it's also smart politics
Believe it: The coalition behind 'Making America Healthy Again' will play an outsized role in deciding the 2026 Congressional midterm elections in more than 500 days from now in November 2026. That's because the issues that go into MAHA close the gender gap and maintain the voter margins with young voters. But MAHA has been years in the making, going back long before President Trump won his second term and even prior to the political accession of current Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. My organization is now prioritizing the voters in the top 50 battleground U.S. House seats and 10 U.S. Senate seats, including the open seats in New Hampshire, Michigan, and Minnesota. The voters in all of the prioritized battleground Congressional races fully support the common-sense, nonpartisan health policies about making our nation healthy again. We will be bringing them and their constituent voices to meet in person with their U.S. senators and Representatives in Washington starting next month. U.S. senators who oppose their constituents' heartfelt, passionate support for these policies will lose in 2026. This includes making epinephrine an over-the-counter drug (something FDA Commissioner Martin Makary voiced support for in his March confirmation hearing) the elimination of taxpayer-funded sodas from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, expansion of regenerative farming, and elimination of glyphosate herbicides and other poisons in the food supply. Conversely, senators and representatives, regardless of party, who support their constituents and the policies we work for will earn the support of their constituents on election day. Our coalition is truly bipartisan, based on an Executive Order issued by a Republican president and implemented by a scion of the Democratic Party. This has helped my organization scale to become the fastest-growing nationwide public health advocacy coalition, which is ready to be activated in a micro-targeted deployment to battleground U.S. House and Senate races in the midterm elections. Perhaps most importantly, leaders in Congress from both parties support our goals. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.), Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.), and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) are all acutely aware of the power our coalition has now, and all four are working with us in support of their respective conferences. Why? Because the 50 battleground House seats and 10 U.S. Senate seats will be decided by mere thousands of votes. Our coalition will be a deciding factor in many if not all of these toss-up Congressional election races. What differentiates our organization from any other entity is our unprecedented structure and confluence with the electorate's mindset and policy priorities. We are free of the corporate groups that traditionally mete out retribution upon those who boldly do what is right. And we have secured the immediate branding of a disruptive force that enjoys trust from voters trust on the policies they care most about. Don't take our word for it. Every congressional incumbent in a battleground district or state has met with us, and many are relying upon us and our voters to be re-elected. In more than 30 years of working with Congress and White Houses of both Republican and Democratic political parties, I have never seen so much certainty among congressional leaders that these issues will determine their political fate and build the next congressional majority. With 522 days to go until election day, each senator and representative working with us understands that his or her race is being won, right now, by MAHA issues and MAHA voters. Robert K. Houton is founder of the Make America Healthy Again Coalition, is a former U.S. Senate candidate from Maryland and candidate for chair of the Democratic National Committee. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
a day ago
- Health
- The Hill
For members of Congress, MAHA isn't just great policy — it's also smart politics
Believe it: The coalition behind 'Making America Healthy Again' will play an outsized role in deciding the 2026 Congressional midterm elections in more than 500 days from now in November 2026. That's because the issues that go into MAHA close the gender gap and maintain the voter margins with young voters. But MAHA has been years in the making, going back long before President Trump won his second term and even prior to the political accession of current Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. My organization is now prioritizing the voters in the top 50 battleground U.S. House seats and 10 U.S. Senate seats, including the open seats in New Hampshire, Michigan, and Minnesota. The voters in all of the prioritized battleground Congressional races fully support the common-sense, nonpartisan health policies about making our nation healthy again. We will be bringing them and their constituent voices to meet in person with their U.S. senators and Representatives in Washington starting next month. U.S. senators who oppose their constituents' heartfelt, passionate support for these policies will lose in 2026. This includes making epinephrine an over-the-counter drug (something FDA Commissioner Martin Makary voiced support for in his March confirmation hearing) the elimination of taxpayer-funded sodas from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, expansion of regenerative farming, and elimination of glyphosate herbicides and other poisons in the food supply. Conversely, senators and representatives, regardless of party, who support their constituents and the policies we work for will earn the support of their constituents on election day. Our coalition is truly bipartisan, based on an Executive Order issued by a Republican president and implemented by a scion of the Democratic Party. This has helped my organization scale to become the fastest-growing nationwide public health advocacy coalition, which is ready to be activated in a micro-targeted deployment to battleground U.S. House and Senate races in the midterm elections. Perhaps most importantly, leaders in Congress from both parties support our goals. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.), Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.), and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) are all acutely aware of the power our coalition has now, and all four are working with us in support of their respective conferences. Why? Because the 50 battleground House seats and 10 U.S. Senate seats will be decided by mere thousands of votes. Our coalition will be a deciding factor in many if not all of these toss-up Congressional election races. What differentiates our organization from any other entity is our unprecedented structure and confluence with the electorate's mindset and policy priorities. We are free of the corporate groups that traditionally mete out retribution upon those who boldly do what is right. And we have secured the immediate branding of a disruptive force that enjoys trust from voters trust on the policies they care most about. Don't take our word for it. Every congressional incumbent in a battleground district or state has met with us, and many are relying upon us and our voters to be re-elected. In more than 30 years of working with Congress and White Houses of both Republican and Democratic political parties, I have never seen so much certainty among congressional leaders that these issues will determine their political fate and build the next congressional majority. With 522 days to go until election day, each senator and representative working with us understands that his or her race is being won, right now, by MAHA issues and MAHA voters. Robert K. Houton is founder of the Make America Healthy Again Coalition, is a former U.S. Senate candidate from Maryland and candidate for chair of the Democratic National Committee.
Epoch Times
a day ago
- Health
- Epoch Times
Mars Inc. Says It Removed Additive Targeted by RFK Jr. From Skittles
Skittles no longer contains titanium dioxide, a chemical identified as potentially problematic by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy's commission in a recent report, the candy's manufacturer said on May 27. 'Our commitment to quality is what has enabled Mars to be enjoyed by consumers for over a century, and nothing is more important than the safety of our products,' a spokesperson for Mars Inc. told news outlets this week. 'All our products are safe to enjoy and meet the high standards and applicable regulations set by food safety authorities around the world, and that's something we will never compromise on.'
