HHS Secretary Grilled About Medicaid, CDC Firings, and Vaccines During Contentious Hearing

September 05, 2025

HHS Secretary Grilled About Medicaid, CDC Firings, and Vaccines During Contentious Hearing

During a tense hearing on Thursday, members of the Senate Finance Committee pressed HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. about his position on a number of issues, including Medicare drug price negotiation, vaccine skepticism, recent firings at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and Medicaid funding for rural hospitals.

“As the committee gathers today, the United States is in the midst of a health care calamity. The largest cuts to American health care in the history of our nation, and they are approaching like an avalanche,” said Ranking Member Ron Wyden (OR) during his opening remarks. “Robert Kennedy’s tenure is so far marked by three calling cards: One is chaos at federal health agencies, leaving doctors, families and the entire nation confused and frightened; corruption that benefits Robert Kennedy, Donald Trump, and their friends at the expense of taxpayers; and higher health costs for families.”

Secretary Kennedy declined to directly answer many questions during the hearing and even asserted – without evidence – that some members were “making things up” or were acting as shills for pharmaceutical corporations, which he frequently critiqued throughout his testimony.

Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (NV) pointed out that this stance is incompatible with his support for the Republican tax law, which gave a major windfall to the pharmaceutical industry by exempting certain drugs from Medicare price negotiation: “So my question to you Mr. Secretary is how do you justify claiming to take on Big Pharma while supporting a bill that shields drugs like Keytruda and other cancer drugs from Medicare negotiation?”

Kennedy indicated he is not fully committed to Medicare drug price negotiation, saying the program and the Inflation Reduction Act were “well-intentioned but were poorly structured.” He also continued to show a lack of understanding about how Medicare works. He was unable to say exactly how much Part B and Part D premiums will increase for enrollees next year nor could he come up with any specifics about how he will keep health care costs down for seniors when asked for details.

Sen. Peter Welch (VT) implored Secretary Kennedy to take action to lower drug prices. “Senator Cortez Masto spoke about the legislation that we now have that would reverse the $5 billion handout to Big Pharma in the ‘One, Big Beautiful Bill,’ and when I leave today with Senator Wyden we are going to go to the floor and seek unanimous consent to pass our legislation that would reverse that giveaway,” said Sen. Welch. “I ask you to put your policy and your body where your mouth is and join us in supporting that bill to restore price negotiation power so those pharma prices can come down from being the highest in the world to something within the range of reason.”

Medicaid funding for rural hospitals was of particular concern for several committee members, including Sen. Mark Warner (VA), Sen. Bernie Sanders (VT) and Committee Chairman Mike Crapo (ID). Kennedy falsely claimed that “there were no Medicaid cuts” in the new tax law and insisted that Republicans’ $50 billion rural hospital fund will be enough to provide relief. But experts have already said the fund will only cover about a third of what rural hospitals will lose to Medicaid cuts.

Senators questioned Secretary Kennedy about shakeups at the CDC, including his unprecedented decision to fire all 17 members from the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) and replace them with individuals who have spread vaccine misinformation. They also sought to clarify the circumstances surrounding his recent ouster of Former CDC Director Susan Monarez.

“Secretary Kennedy’s testimony only heightens our concerns over his ability to properly manage health care for seniors and all Americans,” said Robert Roach, Jr., President of the Alliance. “He’s putting our health insurance and care at risk. We urge him to focus on bringing down health care costs and support evidence-based science or promptly resign.”