Should Kennedy gain confirmation, he would oversee HHS’s $1.7 trillion budget and hold influence over the foods and drugs that affect the daily lives of Americans.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s nomination to be the nation’s top health official is uncertain after a key Republican joined Democrats to raise persistent concerns over the nominee’s deep skepticism of routine childhood vaccinations that prevent deadly diseases.

On Thursday, New Hampshire Democratic Sen. Maggie Hassan — a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions committee — had heard enough from Donald Trump’s controversial nominee to be Secretary of Health and Human Services, and her tearful but angry scolding of RFK Jr. brought the hearings to a poignant halt.