E&W Blog

Today, the Committee held a hearing to examine how the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), under the leadership of Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., is working to Make America Healthy Again. 

Chairman Tim Walberg (R-MI) started the hearing by highlighting how the Trump administration is undertaking a necessary restructuring to rein in costs and refocus HHS on core priorities.

“Finally, I want to commend the Department for also making America fiscally healthy again. The Department’s budget proposal reins in a bloated, unaccountable bureaucracy by restructuring HHS to refocus on core principles—all while saving American taxpayers $1.8 billion every year. In other words, HHS is doing more with less. That is exactly the kind of governance the American people expect and deserve,” he said. 

Rep. Rick Allen (R-GA) discussed his legislation, H.R. 7895—a bill designed to lower health care costs by putting an end to pharmaceutical benefit manager (PBM) kickbacks. 

“It’s one of the perverse features of the health care system that PBMs who add nothing are getting 40 percent of their profits from drugs. They’re driving up costs everywhere. President Trump is laser-focused on fixing the problem,” said Secretary Kennedy.

Rep. James Comer (R-KY) expressed appreciation for the administration’s efforts to address how Americans still lack clear, upfront health care pricing and continue to face rising costs driven by inefficiencies and regulatory failures.

“As you know, the PBM transparency and disclosure requirements included in [this year’s appropriations] will give patients and plan sponsors a more accurate picture of how…companies have distorted and taken advantage of our nation’s health care system,” Rep. Comer said. 

During an exchange with Rep. Burgess Owens (R-UT), Secretary Kennedy highlighted how taxpayer dollars are being wasted, misused, and, in some cases, outright abused, pointing to recent reports of fraud in federal child care assistance programs—especially in Minnesota—as evidence of oversight failures.

Rep. Bob Onder (R-MO) emphasized the need to restore common sense and end the mutilation of children through so-called transgender procedures.

“These quacks say that this is going to improve kids’ mental health and prevent suicide…There is no evidence of that,” Rep. Onder concluded. 

Rep. Glenn “GT” Thompson (R-PA) highlighted his bill that passed the Committee and became law this year—Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act. 

“It’s criminal that we took [whole milk] out of the schools for two generations. [We have had] two generations of kids who were not growing up with the best access to the finest source of micronutrients that build their brains, build their body, build their bones,” Secretary Kennedy said.

Bottom line: This hearing made clear that under the Biden-Harris administration, HHS became bloated, unaccountable, and driven by politics—from rising health care costs to DEI-driven mandates and gender ideology. Under President Trump and Secretary Kennedy, alongside Committee Republicans, that is changing by cutting waste, fixing broken programs, and putting Americans’ health first.