US Senate advances Robert F. Kennedy Jr. health nomination toward confirmation

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate on Wednesday advanced President Donald Trump's nomination of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to head the Department of Health and Human Services, setting up a likely vote on awarding him the position in coming days.

The Senate voted 53-47 along party lines to limit debate on Kennedy's nomination amid staunch opposition from Democrats and many public health experts, largely because of his record over several decades opposing vaccines, including those with long records of safety and efficacy.

Kennedy also has drawn opposition over remarks in which he asserted that COVID was genetically engineered to target Caucasians and Black people, while sparing Jewish and Chinese people.

If confirmed, as expected, by the Republican-controlled Senate, Kennedy, 71, would head the nation's top health agency that oversees agencies such as the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It also is in charge of the Medicare and Medicaid health insurance programs for the elderly, the poor and disabled people.

Kennedy briefly ran for president in 2023, seeking the Democratic nomination, only to switch to running as an independent before ending his campaign and endorsing Trump.

During his confirmation hearings, Kennedy worked to assure senators that he now backs vaccination efforts, telling the Senate Finance Committee that they "play a critical role in healthcare" and noting that his children are vaccinated.

Kennedy, a former environmental lawyer, is the son of former U.S. Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy, who was assassinated in 1968 while seeking the Democratic Party nomination for president.

(Reporting by Richard Cowan, and Ahmed Aboulenein and Bo Erickson in Washington; Editing by Matthew Lewis)

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