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Watchdog: Senators Should Make RFK Jr. Prove He Won’t Reap Legal Fees From Major Anti-HPV Vaccine Lawsuits Before Confirming Him HHS Head
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WASHINGTON, DC – During both Senate confirmation hearings this week for President Trump’s nominee for Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), Robert F. Kennedy Jr. faced pointed questioning about a major conflict of interest included in his financial disclosure. Kennedy — a prominent vaccine opponent — reported earning fees from lawsuits against leading HPV vaccine Gardasil that his affiliated firm, Wisner Baum, has steered towards civil courts in pursuit of large monetary damages rather than through HHS’s special vaccine court. If confirmed, Kennedy would oversee the regulation of Gardasil, including determining how HHS’s vaccine court handles Wisner Baum’s lawsuits, while potentially enriching himself from an unprecedented legal strategy.
When Senator Elizabeth Warren pressed Kennedy on the issue Wednesday, he ducked the question. When confronted with the conflict of interest again today by Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA), Kennedy at first denied receiving any such fees, and then when pressed further, claimed without details: “I have given away all of my rights to any fees in that lawsuit.”
“Under pressure, Mr. Kennedy claimed today he’s forfeited his right to receive lucrative legal fees from lawsuits that he helped to bring against HPV vaccines by his affiliated legal firm. Strangely, Kennedy made no such pledge when asked about it the day before,” said Accountable.US Executive Director Tony Carrk. “Senators should ensure Kennedy is being straight with the American people considering his reputation for making many dubious claims, like his statement that the COVID-19 vaccine is the ‘deadliest vaccine ever made’. Senators should demand the receipts before voting to confirm, with so much at stake. If Kennedy continues to rake in these massive legal fees and line his pockets from anti-vax civil lawsuit fees, it presents a serious conflict of interest as he could determine if special vaccine court cases get sent to civil court – helping to reap hefty extra fees for himself and his law firm friends in the process.”
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In his latest financial disclosure, Kennedy reported he will “retain an interest” in fees from lawsuits he referred to major legal firm Wisner Baum, which claims winning over $4 billion in verdicts and settlements, including those against pharmaceutical drug and medical device makers.
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Kennedy, who has stated that Wisner Baum senior partner Michael Baum is one of his “closest friends,” has served as co-counsel in Wisner Baum’s lawsuit claiming that Gardasil—the widely-used and recommended vaccine against human papillomavirus (HPV)—has harmed consumers.
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Kennedy has played an “instrumental role in organizing mass litigation” against Gardasil, helping to drive related lawsuits outside of the HHS’s “special vaccine court,” the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program (VICP), and into civil lawsuits that could generate more money for law firms like Wisner Baum. The “first test” of the mass litigation Kennedy helped orchestrate is expected in late January 2025, while his HHS nomination is being considered.
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Although Kennedy has stated he will divest from other potential HHS conflicts, he did not comment on what fees he stands to earn from the Gardasil litigation. While his letter to the U.S. Department of Government Ethics claimed he would divest from fees earned though federal government cases or the VICP, it is unclear if he could still earn fees from Wisner Baum’s Gardasil lawsuits filed in civil courts.
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Notably, Wisner Baum offers a “comprehensive guide” for filing Gardasil lawsuits which suggests that opting out of VICP claims and filing civil lawsuits will yield more damages for clients. Wisner Baum touts its ability to seek additional “punitive damages against Merck,” the maker of Gardasil, and the firm claims it can find “smoking gun documents” through civil discovery processes.
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As Reuters noted: “As HHS Secretary, Kennedy could remove individual vaccines from the vaccine court. Plaintiffs’ lawyers could then sue manufacturers directly and pursue a wider set of claims from the outset, said Dorit Reiss, a professor at UC Law San Francisco.”
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This adds to a rapidly growing list of conflicts of interest for the Trump administration that could come at the expense of everyday Americans.
MORE INFORMATION FROM ACCOUNTABLE.US:
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