White House Oversees HHS Amid Kennedy Leadership Concerns

White House officials have stepped in to oversee operations at the Department of Health and Human Services, amid growing concerns that Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s leadership and policy decisions could harm Republican prospects in the 2026 midterm elections. The intervention, reported in recent days, follows a series of controversies surrounding Kennedy's "Make America Healthy Again" agenda and comes as the administration seeks to mitigate political fallout from unpopular initiatives.

Kennedy, appointed by President Donald Trump in early 2026, was initially given broad latitude to pursue health reforms, with Trump encouraging him to "go wild on health." However, internal polling has revealed deep public skepticism toward several of Kennedy's priorities, particularly his positions on vaccines. Since taking office, Kennedy has replaced independent experts on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's vaccine advisory panel with vaccine skeptics and overhauled the child vaccination schedule without prior notification to staff. These changes have coincided with a rise in measles cases, with 30 states reporting at least one confirmed instance in 2026, up from 44 states in...