RFK Jr. now runs America’s health system—here are the wildest things we learned about him in the last year

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (RFK Jr.) was confirmed last week as President Donald Trump’s Secretary of Health and Human Services. So what better time to look back and remind ourselves of some of his most outlandish claims?

RFK Jr. was confirmed in the Senate following a 52-48 vote, with Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) being the only Republican to oppose Trump’s appointee.

In response to his decision, McConnell said that while “individuals, parents, and families have a right to push for a healthier America,” RFK Jr. wasn’t fit to lead such efforts given his “record of trafficking in dangerous conspiracy theories and eroding trust in public health institutions.”

That record, as McConnell puts it, is indeed a very long one and continues to this day. But RFK Jr.’s failed run for president and eventual support for Trump thrust him into the spotlight more than ever. And what we’ve learned in the last two years about RFK Jr., known best for his anti-vaccine beliefs, has gotten stranger every day. 

The most outlandish revelations about RFK Jr.

For starters, in May of last year, we all learned about his brain worm as journalists dug into RFK Jr.’s past. During a 2012 deposition, RFK Jr. said that a worm “got into [his] brain and ate a portion of it and then died.”

Many argued that the brain worm revelation made sense given RFK Jr. 's worldview. But that was only the beginning. Months later in August, it was discovered that RFK Jr. had been responsible for dumping a bear cub carcass in New York City’s Central Park in 2014. Just in case you forgot.

Yes, you heard that correctly. The bear cub’s discovery was huge news at the time and a big mystery. RFK Jr. claims the fiasco began after he saw a woman hit the bear with her car. He then claims to have strapped the bear to the roof of his own vehicle and planned to skin it and save the meat, despite the fact that almost all bear meat is very likely to contain roundworms if not properly cooked.

But when RFK Jr.’s day ran long, he decided to dump the carcass off in Central Park. Not only that, he put an old bike next to the bear to make it appear as if it had been hit by a rider. Very weird.

And none of these bizarre incidents have anything to do with his conspiratorial beliefs, which surround everything from chemtrails to AIDS. He’s also pushed inaccurate claims about water fluoridation, promoted raw milk, and even alleged that COVID-19 was engineered to protect Ashkenazi Jews and Chinese people.

Whether the brain worm, his potential appetite for bear and raw milk, or his outlandish beliefs will result in worrying changes for America remains to be seen.

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