Colorado Gov. Jared Polis seemed to endorse President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for Health and Human Services Secretary in a post on X Thursday.
“I’m excited by the news that the President-Elect will appoint Robert Kennedy Jr. to Health and Human Services,” Polis said. “He helped us defeat vaccine mandates in Colorado in 2019 and will help make America healthy again by shaking up HHS and FDA.”
Kennedy is a former presidential candidate and anti-vaccine activist.
HHS is key to the health of the nation, with 13 operating divisions, 10 agencies in the U.S. Public Health Service and three human services agencies, which administer a wide variety of health and human services and conduct research. The list includes the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Food and Drug Administration and the National Institutes of Health.
In an email from his press office to reporters, Trump said “For too long, Americans have been crushed by the industrial food complex and drug companies who have engaged in deception, misinformation, and disinformation when it comes to Public Health.”
He said HHS “will play a big role in helping ensure that everybody will be protected from harmful chemicals, pollutants, pesticides, pharmaceutical products, and food additives that have contributed to the overwhelming Health Crisis in this Country.”
Trump said Kennedy would restore HHS agencies to the “traditions of Gold Standard Scientific Research, and beacons of Transparency, to end the Chronic Disease epidemic, and to Make America Great and Healthy Again!”
“I hope he leans into personal choice on vaccines rather than bans (which I think are terrible, just like mandates),” Polis wrote. “But what I’m most optimistic about is taking on big pharma and the corporate ag oligopoly to improve our health. Before you mock him or disagree, I want to share with you some quotes that if he follows through show why I’m excited.”
Polis shared quotes about leveling the “playing field for Americans internationally on drug costs,” and capping drug prices, in which he noted, “Colorado currently has an application just SITTING at FDA for us to import low-cost prescription drugs from Canada and we just need their approval.”
The governor also quoted RFK Jr. about “entire departments, like the nutrition department at the FDA that are – that have to go, that are not doing their job, they're not protecting our kids," noting they’re “dominated by big corporate ag rather than human health and they do more harm than good.”
“He will face strong special interest opposition on these, but I look forward to partnering with him to truly make America healthy again and I hope that we can finally make progress on these important issues,” the governor wrote on X.
In another post, Polis wrote: “Science must remain THE cornerstone of our nation’s health policy and the science-backed decision to get vaccinated improves public health and safety. But if as a country we follow the science we would also be far more concerned about the impact of pesticides on public health, ag policy on nutrition, and the lack of access to prescription drugs due to drug high prices. This is why I am for a major shake-up in institutions like the FDA that have been barriers to lowering drug costs and promoting healthy food choices.”
“Lest there be any doubt, I am vaccinated as is my family. I will hold any HHS Secretary to the same high standard of protecting and improving public health,” Polis wrote.
Polis was asked Wednesday by Colorado Matters host Ryan Warner about working with the incoming Republican administration.
Polis noted the state has a pending application for re-importation of prescription drugs from Canada, with both Colorado and Florida filing requests.
“That's been very slow-going with the Biden administration and the FDA, and they still haven't approved it. I hope that either Biden approves it going out the door or that the new incoming administration and the new FDA commissioner promptly grant the waiver that allows us to save Coloradans money by importing prescription drugs.”
On Wednesday, Polis launched a nationwide initiative aimed at protecting state powers and democratic institutions. He and fellow Democratic governor J.B. Pritzker of Illinois announced they’ve co-founded a coalition called Governors Safeguarding Democracy.
Editor's note: This is a developing story.
