Overview
- Citing the Wall Street Journal, the administration has centralized HHS operations and messaging to reduce political exposure ahead of the elections.
- Medicare chief Chris Klomp has been elevated to serve as deputy with broad operational authority and a mandate to emphasize priorities like affordability and nutrition.
- HHS Deputy Secretary Jim O’Neill has been removed from his Senate-confirmed role, and oversight of the FDA has been reassigned to ease internal friction.
- Aides point to missteps under Kennedy, including a slow response to a Texas measles outbreak, backlash over mental-health grant cuts, and tensions tied to a generic abortion pill approval.
- Kennedy retains President Trump’s personal support, even as reporting cites a recent Annenberg survey indicating declining public confidence in health agencies since Kennedy took charge.