Vaccines and measles outbreak remain a focus<\/p>\n
\n Kennedy could not escape questions Tuesday about his stance on vaccine safety and how that may have fueled a sharp rise in measles cases in the US. As in earlier hearings, the secretary denied that his vaccine views played a role in declining vaccination rates and disputed that he has been anti-vaccine.\n <\/p>\n
\n \u201cThe problem is not me. There are people in this country who do not vaccinate,\u201d Kennedy said during the House hearing.\n <\/p>\n
\n US cases of measles surged to a record high<\/a> in 2025; the government has recorded more than 1,700 cases<\/a> so far this year.\n <\/p>\n \n Amid questions about vaccine policy changes \u2014 such as a proposal to delay hepatitis B vaccination from infancy to age 12 \u2014 Kennedy insisted that he is not against vaccines but wants more safety studies.\n <\/p>\n \n Vaccines are tested in some of the largest clinical trials of pharmaceutical products, often involving millions of trial participants. They are also continuously monitored for safety<\/a> after approval.\n <\/p>\n \n Rates of hepatitis B fell dramatically since the first vaccine launched more than four decades ago, but federal data suggests that there were more than 2,000 new cases<\/a> in the US last year.\n <\/p>\n \n Kennedy also indicated that he is soliciting new members for a key panel of agency advisers: the US Preventive Services Task Force<\/a>, which recommends screenings for cancer, diabetes and heart diseases, behavioral counseling and other preventive care. Under the Affordable Care Act, insurers must cover preventive services that get an A or B grade<\/a> from the group at no cost to patients.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cOne of the things that we\u2019re working on right now is to reform the United States Preventive Service Task Force,\u201d he told the House committee, adding that a notice will be put in the Federal Register this week. \u201cThat task force has been lackadaisical. It\u2019s not been doing its job. If it had been doing its job, we would have early screening for Alzheimer\u2019s.\u201d\n <\/p>\n \n The task force has not met for more than a year and has been unable to advance recommendations that are under review or in development, concerning many preventive care experts. Five of its 16 members\u2019 terms expired on January 1.\n <\/p>\n \n The USPSTF shakeup comes after Kennedy overhauled<\/a> the agency\u2019s highest-profile vaccine advisory group, the CDC\u2019s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices. Kennedy, a longtime vaccine skeptic, replaced all of the committee\u2019s members last year. The new panel voted to abandon universal hepatitis B vaccination<\/a> for newborns; placed restrictions<\/a> on a combination shot that protects against chickenpox as well as measles, mumps and rubella; and took the unprecedented step of not universally recommending Covid-19 vaccinations<\/a>, instead making it a matter of personal choice.\n <\/p>\n \n After being hammered by several Democratic lawmakers about the Trump administration\u2019s cuts to Medicaid, Kennedy insisted that no cuts are taking place.\n <\/p>\n \n Kennedy repeatedly said across several hearings that \u201cthere have been no cuts to Medicaid,\u201d insisting that any loss of coverage was for ineligible people such as illegal immigrants.\n <\/p>\n \n He pointed on Tuesday to a Congressional Budget Office report that he argued shows federal spending on the critical safety net program would increase in coming years.\n <\/p>\n \n Federal spending on Medicaid is forecast to grow from $708 billion this year to $941 billion in 2035, according to the CBO\u2019s latest projection. But it would have increased even more had congressional Republicans not approved the One Big Beautiful Bill Act<\/a> last summer \u2013 to just over $1 trillion in 2035, the CBO estimated prior to the law\u2019s enactment.\n <\/p>\n \n The \u201cbig, beautiful bill\u201d \u2013 which implements the first-ever work requirement<\/a> in Medicaid and limits states\u2019 ability to finance the program, among other changes \u2013 is expected to slash spending on Medicaid by a total of $1.2 trillion between 2026 and 2035, the CBO projected. The historic cut means the safety net program won\u2019t be able to keep up with costs, which could force states to further restrict eligibility or benefits, experts have said.\n <\/p>\n \n The Republican package is expected to reduce Medicaid enrollment by 13.1 million people in 2035, the CBO estimates.\n <\/p>\n Questions about maternal and women\u2019s health persist<\/p>\n \n Maternal health care and the country\u2019s high rate of maternal deaths \u2014 particularly among Black women \u2014 have been a contentious point between Kennedy and Democrats since the first hearings last week. Lawmakers including Pennsylvania Rep. Summer Lee have pressed Kennedy on how cuts to diversity, equity and inclusion programs have affected efforts to address those disparities.\n <\/p>\n \n On Tuesday, Maine Republican Susan Collins joined those lawmakers.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cIt appears that the administration is looking at these health disparities and is not looking at them \u2014 is pulling back from these grants instead of figuring out why these health disparities exist and how to address them,\u201d Collins said.\n <\/p>\n \n Kennedy has maintained that this administration has made the most improvements to maternal health programs in history.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cYou\u2019re right, we have the worst maternal health outcomes of any of the Western countries, and Black women are 2.6 times more likely\u201d to die in pregnancy and childbirth than White women, Kennedy said Tuesday. He pointed to a perinatal pilot program that he said has reduced the rate of maternal mortality by 42%. When asked about that reduction, HHS directed CNN to a report<\/a> that found a 41.5% decline in deaths during hospital stays for childbirth among 250 hospitals over several years, through a program started in 2020.\n <\/p>\n \n Lee had asked Friday what share of that drop had been among Black women.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cIt helps everybody,\u201d Kennedy said.\n <\/p>\n \n Over the course of this month\u2019s HHS budget hearings, three Democrats have pulled the health secretary into questions about the ongoing war in Iran, questioning both the cost of the war and President Donald Trump\u2019s mental acuity.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cIn Trump\u2019s America, we can\u2019t afford health care, but apparently we can spend a billion dollars a day in a war with Iran,\u201d said Frank Pallone of New Jersey, ranking member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, on Tuesday. \u201cDo you believe that further cuts to health care programs, including Medicare, Medicaid and the ACA, are necessary in order to pay for Trump\u2019s ongoing war with Iran?\u201d\n <\/p>\n \n Kennedy again said there have been no Medicaid cuts.\n <\/p>\n![\"HHS](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/c-2026-04-21t162343z-1682175743-rc2stkan37n7-rtrmadp-3-usa-congress-kennedy.jpg\")
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