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Kennedy Jr. Seeks Access to Medical Records for Vaccine Research in El Paso

KVIA•Thursday, June 4, 2026 at 3:29 PM•CNN Newsource

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Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the U.S. Secretary of Health, is pushing for federal access to the medical records of Americans to investigate alleged links between vaccines and autism. This initiative has faced significant opposition from public health officials who question the legality and utility of such data access. Concerns have been raised about the potential invasion of privacy, as the data could include sensitive health information. Despite the controversies, Kennedy believes that analyzing these records is crucial for understanding autism and vaccine safety. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has not publicly announced any new projects related to this initiative, but discussions about data sharing with state health systems are ongoing, with a proposal aiming to provide the HHS with real-time health data by 2028.

Key Details: • Kennedy's initiative aims to access medical records for vaccine-autism research. • Public health officials express concerns over privacy and legality of data access. • HHS discussions with state health systems may lead to real-time data sharing by 2028. • Kennedy's past proposals have faced criticism; current plans are not yet publicly announced.

public-health vaccines autism federal-policy health-data

People & Organizations

Donald TrumpRobert F. Kennedy Jr.Department of Health and Human ServicesWilliam "Reyn" Archer IIIIndiana Health Information Exchange

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