News Briefs: HHS Secretary Kennedy Will Helm Make America Healthy Again Commission

Feb 20
Feb 20, 2025

Shortly after the Senate confirmed Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as HHS secretary, President Donald Trump issued an executive order (EO) calling for the creation of a Make America Healthy Again Commission focused on disease prevention. Citing the rising rates of mental health disorders, obesity, diabetes, and other chronic diseases, the Feb. 13 EO noted that the U.S. must “re-direct our national focus, in the public and private sectors, toward understanding and drastically lowering chronic disease rates and ending childhood chronic disease.” It called on the National Institutes of Health and other government-funded research to “prioritize gold-standard research on the root causes of why Americans are getting sick.” Moreover, it directed agencies to “ensure the availability of expanded treatment options and the flexibility for health insurance coverage to provide benefits that support beneficial lifestyle changes and disease prevention.” Kennedy will chair the new commission, which will include members from a host of other agencies not including CMS. In fact, the order made no mention of Medicare or Medicaid. While Kennedy made “numerous promises to senators around vaccines,” Raymond James analysts said they expect the new secretary to have “little impact on CMS or payment policies as…he showed a significant lack of understanding” of those programs during his confirmation hearings. At his first public appearance as HHS secretary on Feb. 18, Kennedy said he intends to review the childhood vaccination schedule, according to the Associated Press. “The views of appointed staff (not announced by President Trump) likely will shape much of the real policy for the department including in areas like Medicare Advantage, provider reimbursement, among others,” wrote Raymond James’ Chris Meekins on Feb. 17. In a statement issued Feb. 13, Better Medicare Alliance urged Kennedy to protect MA with “adequate funding and a stable regulatory approach.”
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Lauren Flynn Kelly

Lauren has been covering health business issues since the early 2000s and specializes in in-depth reporting on Medicare Advantage, managed Medicaid and Medicare Part D. She also possesses a deep understanding of the complex world of pharmacy benefit management, having written AIS Health’s Radar on Drug Benefits from 2004 to 2005 and again from 2011 to 2016. In addition to her role as managing editor of Radar on Medicare Advantage, she oversees AIS Health’s publications and manages the health editorial staff. She graduated from Vassar College with a B.A. in English.