Kennedy Confirmation Hearings
If confirmed as health secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. would oversee the Food and Drug Administration and other agencies that issue key decisions for drug companies.
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Lawmakers quizzed Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Wednesday during a Senate Finance hearing about his decision to keep a financial stake in litigation against a major vaccine maker.
Ethics records released in advance of the hearing said that Mr. Kennedy planned to receive fees on cases with the personal injury law firm Wisner Baum.
Mr. Kennedy has referred clients to the firm in cases claiming injuries from the Gardasil vaccine, a Merck product that is meant to prevent cervical cancer that can be caused by the human papillomavirus, or HPV.
Mr. Kennedy took the unusual step of keeping his stake in the pending litigation, according to ethics documents he filed in advance of his confirmation hearings. Mr. Kennedy said in his ethics filings that he would end his referral agreement with the law firm but would collect fees related to cases in the continuing cases.
The financial arrangement drew sharp criticism from Senator Elizabeth Warren, a Democrat from Massachusetts. She noted Mr. Kennedy’s history of suggesting that drug companies and federal officials are motivated by financial gain.
She accused Mr. Kennedy of profiteering from vaccine skepticism. She pointed to the financial stake in litigation against the vaccine maker Merck — and his intention to hold on to it even if he gains regulatory power over the company as health secretary.