Never Ending Trump HHS/FDA Chaos & Controversy Getting Real Old, Real Scary: Public Health Project Newsletter

The Trump-RFK Jr. FDA had an especially rough week, which is really saying something for the perpetually troubled agency marred by mass layoffs, staff revolt, and ridiculous politicization against life-saving vaccines and medicine under this administration.

First came the bombshell reporting that the FDA purposely kept the public in the dark on research findings that COVID and Shingles vaccines are safe — clear politically motivated obstruction that House Democrats are now demanding answers on.

Then came reports that an unqualified, anti-science Trump FDA political appointee overruled career FDA scientists on approval of a new type 1 diabetes drug.

Now come reports Donald Trump is set to fire FDA Commissioner Marty Makary just days after Trump read Makary the riot act for not approving harmful and addictive flavored vapes “fast enough” based on Trump’s cynical belief it will appeal to “young MAGA voters” and as a big fat reward to his big vape megadonors – the profound health consequences for young Americans be damned.

Makary’s hesitation to poison our kids was the bare minimum the public could hope for from a Trump FDA commissioner, but one FDA staffer is ominously worried about what comes next: “He will not be missed by a single career person. And we will only regret it when they manage to find someone worse.”

So much infighting, turnover, special interest appeasement, and hostility towards science at the agency we all count on for safe food and medicine is a public health disaster just waiting to happen.

Unfortunately, nothing will change under the direction of health secretary RFK Jr., who continues to generate enormous controversy and public health threats on his own:

Some Of Your Kids May Die, But That’s a Sacrifice RFK Jr. Is Willing to Make In Service to His Anti-Vax Agenda: Last night in Ohio, Secretary Kennedy gave a truly shocking response to concerns from a local family physician about the dangers of his CDC rolling back hepatitis B shot recommendations for newborns. Kennedy essentially argued that the lives of some children are not worth the trouble of vaccinating all newborns against hepatitis B, which condemns victims to chronic liver disease and even death. The man is a public health menace.

RFK Jr.’s Anti-Antidepressant Campaign = More Empty Promises: Kennedy rolled out a new anti-antidepressant campaign this week that pushes “clinicians to “de-prescribe” Medicare patients from the drugs by instead prescribing “non-pharmacological” services such as therapy.” But there’s 2 big problems he conveniently left out: Trump’s budget severely guts mental health programs and eliminates the department that’s supposed to train clinicians on this new strategy, while very few therapists accept any public insurance like Medicare.

RFK Jr.’s Refusal to Endorse Vitamin K Shots for Newborns Invites More Tragic Brain Bleeds: ProPublica is out with a deeply depressing report that more and more American babies are bleeding to death as more parents fear giving them a safe-saving Vitamin K shot, no thanks to RFK Jr.’s anti-vax propaganda and refusal to promote the shot.

Trump and RFK Jr.’s Rollbacks On Health Crisis Preparedness Could Haunt Them Amid Hantavirus Outbreak: Two Americans are so far exposed to an extremely deadly, rodent-borne hantavirus, which is an ideal time to reflect on the many, many ways the Trump administration has deliberately left us less prepared to deal with such outbreaks that could easily devolve into a major health crisis.

Trump and RFK Jr. Hemorrhaging MAHA Support After Driving Up Health Costs: A new poll from KFF found health care affordability is front and center for voters, including MAHA voters, after Republicans passed Trump’s Big Ugly Law, enacting the largest cut to health care in U.S. history.

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