RFK Jr. defends proposed 12% health budget cut, measles response in House testimony

Politics RFK Jr. defends proposed 12% health budget cut, measles response in House testimony April 16, 2026 / 6:58 PM EDT / AP Add CBS News on Google Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Thursday faced federal lawmakers for the first time since September as he sought to defend a more than 12% proposed cut to his department's budget and dodge arrows from angry Democrats along the way. In his testimony before the House Ways and Means Committee, kicking off an expected sprint of seven budget hearings he'll attend across congressional committees and subcommittees over the next week, Kennedy emphasized the administration's work to reform dietary guidelines and crack down on waste, fraud and abuse.Republicans on the committee praised Kennedy as a "breath of fresh air" and asked him to promote his department's recent actions. Democrats, who have been furious over Kennedy's sweeping overhaul of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, largely had a different agenda.They needled Kennedy on what they viewed as the Trump administration's hypocrisy on fraud, demanded to know why he was cutting budgets for various programs and slammed his efforts to pull back vaccine recommendations and messaging, which they said have caused unnecessary deaths. Kennedy fired back, often raising his voice as he accused the Democrats of misrepresenting his work and past statements.Here are three standout moments from Thursday's hearing.A standoff over measlesOne heated exchange early in the hearing came between Kennedy and Rep. Linda Sanchez. The California Democrat decried recent measles outbreaks across the U.S. and asked Kennedy to answer for the fact that under his leadership, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention pulled back public health messaging supporting vaccination. "As a mother, this horrifies me," Sanchez said. "Did President Trump approve your decision to end CDC's pro-vaccine public messaging campaign?"Kennedy repeatedly refused to answer, saying first he...