If confirmed by the Senate, Kennedy would head the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), which oversees many of the country’s health agencies, from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

RFK Jr.'s confirmation hearings continue today as he appears before a second Senate committee. Follow STAT's live updates.

In this week’s edition of InnovationRx, we look at HHS nominee Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s first Senate confirmation hearing, the chaos at the NIH and with federal research funding, new dosages for an Alzheimer’s drug, a major tuberculosis outbreak, and more. To get it in your inbox, subscribe here.

If approved, Kennedy will control a $1.7 trillion agency that oversees food and hospital inspections, hundreds of health clinics, vaccine recommendations and health insurance for roughly half the country.

Caroline Kennedy wrote a letter to the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions strongly discouraging them from confirming her cousin Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as U.S. Department of Health and Human Services secretary. Robert will be questioned by senators this week before being confirmed to President Donald Trump’s cabinet.

Kennedy Jr., President Donald Trump's choice to be Secretary of Health and Human Services, appears before the Senate Finance Committee for his confirmation hearing at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday,

Trump’s nominee for Health and Human Services secretary said that NIH, FDA and CDC would be integral in his objective to prevent chronic disease.