Long before the COVID-19 pandemic, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was building up a following with his anti-vaccine nonprofit group, Children’s Health Defense, and became one of the world’s most influential spreaders of fear and distrust around vaccines.

Kennedy has been criticized for making false medical claims. He has also vowed to purge the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

The nearly $2 trillion agency administers health-insurance programs for millions of Americans, approves medications and oversees vaccine safety.