Robert F Kennedy Jr says he will withhold from lawsuit against drug company Merck even if he becomes Donald Trump's top US health official, ethics records show Any windfall gains received.
In an ethics agreement released Wednesday, Kennedy said he will retain a share of potential proceeds from the case brought by law firm Wisner Baum against Merck & Co.'s Gardasil vaccine, which protects against the human papillomavirus (HPV).
"I am entitled to 10 percent of the fees paid in contingency fee cases referred to the firm," Kennedy, co-counsel at the law firm Wisner Baum, said in a letter to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' top ethics czar.
Trump appointed Kennedy, a vaccine skeptic, as health secretary in November. Kennedy said he has the authority to retain an interest in cases that do not involve a "direct and substantial interest" to the United States or the country.
The ethics record was released on Wednesday by Senate Finance Committee Chairman Mike Crapo, who announced that Kennedy's confirmation hearings will be held next Wednesday.
Kennedy, the scion of a prominent Democratic political family, has stressed that he played no direct role in the Merck case and pledged to avoid taking any action to influence the outcome if appointed as Health and Human Services secretary.
This week, a Los Angeles court will hear the first in a series of cases alleging that Merck's vaccine harms young people. Kennedy first became involved in legal action against Gardasil in 2018.
The former Democrat, who endorsed Trump last year after running for the White House independently, also said he would step down as an adviser to Weisnerbaum.
In separate financial records filed Wednesday with the U.S. Office of Government Ethics, Kennedy disclosed $11.6 million in disclosed income over the past two years, including $8.8 million he earned while working as an environmental lawyer at Kennedy & Madonna. He promised to terminate his employment with the company.
Records show Kennedy was also paid $856,559 by Wisner Baum during the same period. He also holds small stakes in biotech companies Crispr Therapeutics and Dragonfly Therapeutics, according to financial disclosures.
The revelations highlight the controversy surrounding Trump's decision to pick an outspoken vaccine skeptic and activist to oversee the U.S. health sector - including its 13 departments and agencies such as the Food and Drug Administration and the National Institutes of Health These departments and agencies have broad influence over drug regulation in the United States.
Some in Kennedy's camp believe the postponement of Kennedy's congressional hearings scheduled for this week is a sign that he may have difficulty winning approval from key health and finance committees whose support he needs before a full vote can be held. . in the Senate.
Some senators have raised questions about his record on issues such as vaccines and abortion.
The lawsuit against Merck over Gardasil is one of several high-profile anti-vaccine lawsuits in which Kennedy has been involved. The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends Gardasil as a routine vaccine for children ages 11 and 12, and 160 million people have been vaccinated, according to official statistics, which is scheduled to be distributed by the end of 2022. Certain high-risk types of HPV can cause cervical cancer.
Kennedy did not respond to a request for comment. Merck said: “Plaintiffs’ allegations are without merit and we remain committed to vigorously defending against them.”