WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA), chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, delivered remarks during today’s hearing with U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to discuss the proposed HHS budget for fiscal year 2026. This is the first time in at least two decades that the HHS Secretary is testifying on a presidential budget before the HELP Committee.
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Cassidy’s speech as prepared for delivery can be found below:
The Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions will please come to order.
Thank you, Secretary Kennedy, for coming before the committee.
President Trump has undertaken the mission to reform the federal government, making health care more affordable and making America Healthy Again.
It’s clear the status quo is not working. Bureaucratic bloat and regulatory hurdles at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) have made it harder to deliver critical services. We need to make HHS work better for the American people. That means finding ways to speed up approvals for lifesaving drugs, improving delivery of health care services so Americans who need these benefits can receive them, addressing high levels of chronic disease, and holding bad actors accountable to lower health care costs for American workers.
I’m encouraged that HHS is already working to address some of these issues.
I want to note that this is the first time in at least two decades the HHS Secretary is testifying on the department’s budget before the HELP Committee. I appreciate Secretary Kennedy for coming to answer our questions on the fiscal year 2026 budget.
Now, people instinctively fear change, even when it’s from worse to better. But without a clearly defined plan or objective, people will assume the worst.
Much of the conversation around HHS’ agenda has been set by anonymous sources in the media and individuals with a bias against the President. Americans need direct reassurance from the administration, from you Mr. Secretary, that its reforms will make their lives easier, not harder. And that’s why I’ve invited you. No one can make that case better than you.
There are questions about how HHS will be able to preserve its primary functions and duties under this proposed budget. Many offices and programs potentially seeing changes are essential for implementing bipartisan laws, including laws championed by President Trump.
In 2018, Congress worked with President Trump to pass the SUPPORT for Patients and Communities Act, protecting communities and saving lives through increased access to naloxone and prevention and treatment programs for fentanyl addiction. The HELP Committee and President Trump also worked together to pass laws to improve research into health disparities, address the needs of Americans with traumatic brain injuries, Alzheimer’s, and Lyme disease, support family caregivers, and help moms and babies live healthier lives.
These programs are essential to achieving President Trump’s goal of Making America Healthy Again. In this proposed budget, offices that are responsible for overseeing many of these initiatives, which were initiated by President Trump, will be consolidated or repurposed.
I agree with Secretary Kennedy that HHS needs reform. Over the past several years, I’ve engaged stakeholders and worked with colleagues to identify opportunities to modernize a wide array of HHS agencies and programs. The Department needs to have an effective plan to fulfill statutory duties in tandem with its efforts to increase transparency and accountability, streamline programs, and root out wasteful spending. Congress and the administration should work together to ensure reforms strike the right balance and deliver for the American people.
Mr. Secretary, no one can set the record straight better than you; to explain how the Department will maintain its critical duties and implement change important to Americans' health.
By providing this clarity, we in Congress will be able to advocate for our shared priorities in future legislation. And, you will gain the trust of the American people, putting their minds at ease.
Again, I appreciate you being here today. I look forward to hearing how the proposed HHS budget will advance President Trump’s mission of Making America Healthy Again.
With that, I recognize Senator Sanders for his opening statement.
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