The public appears to be losing faith in Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s ability to fulfill his promise to Make America Healthy Again, which could hurt Republicans in the 2026 midterm elections in November.
Only 1 in 4 people report trusting health information from the HHS secretary, down from roughly one-third when he took office in 2026, according to a new Axios-Ipsos poll.
Fewer than 1 in 5 Americans believe the policies of Kennedy and President Donald Trump have made the country healthier.
Kennedy’s move to join forces with Trump on the 2024 campaign trail was a factor in getting swing voters to support the GOP, with the campaign promise of tackling the proliferation of chronic diseases such as obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and cancer.
But Kennedy has had a turbulent 20-month tenure in office, largely driven by conflicts with other Republicans and public health officials on vaccine policy on the basis of the debunked premise that childhood vaccines cause autism.
The public also reports being confused about the motivation behind certain federal health policies. Roughly 1 in 3 respondents said they believe HHS policies often reflect the personal views of Trump administration officials, while another third say they reflect the expertise of career scientists at the federal health department.
In particular, Americans’ trust in the federal childhood vaccine schedule recommendations has dropped significantly since Kennedy overhauled the CDC’s vaccine advisory panel last summer.
Following the leadership change on the vaccine panel, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in December cut the number of preventive vaccines the agency recommends for children from 18 down to 11. The CDC’s guidance was blocked by the courts on procedural grounds, but Trump issued an executive order in August to circumvent the judicial process and affirm the new, reduced vaccine schedule.
The Axios-Ipsos poll found trust in the federal childhood vaccine schedule dropped from 71% in June 2025 to only 62% last month following the administration’s changes.
The drop in trust for federal vaccine recommendations was steepest among Democrats, but it has declined for Republicans and independents as well.
When comparing sources of information on childhood vaccine recommendations, 34% of respondents had more confidence in guidance from the American Academy of Pediatrics than the CDC, compared to only 9% who said they favored the CDC.
More broadly, 7 in 10 survey respondents said they did not believe the federal government “makes the health and well-being of its citizens a priority,” up from 63% in June 2024.
Democrats in Congress have pledged to investigate Kennedy’s handling of the childhood vaccine schedule and the nationwide outbreak of measles if they gain control of the House or Senate during the midterm elections.