Pharmaceutical stocks continued to tumble Friday following President-elect Donald Trump’s nomination of vaccine skeptic Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to head the Department of Health and Human Services.
Shares of COVID-19 vaccine manufacturers Moderna and Pfizer saw early Friday declines of 4% and 4.3%, respectively. U.S.-based biotech firm Novavax also slipped 2.6%, while Germany’s BioNTech shares plummeted 5.9% and British pharmaceutical giant GSK’s stock dropped 2.9%.
The decline began in the final hour of Thursday’s trading as reports emerged regarding Trump’s contentious choice for HHS leadership.
Pfizer, Moderna, and Novavax have faced challenges in replicating the profits they saw during the height of the pandemic as demand for COVID-19 shots among Americans has waned. Should RFK Jr. — son of the late attorney general and U.S. senator assassinated in 1968 — be confirmed as head of HHS, he would oversee 80,000 employees, a $1.7 trillion budget, and a vast network of health-related agencies.
While Kennedy has pledged not to “take away” anyone’s vaccines, he remains a prominent critic of childhood vaccinations. Over the years, he has persistently claimed a link between vaccines and autism and founded Children’s Health Defense, an anti-vaccine nonprofit.
In May 2023, Kennedy, then running as an independent presidential candidate, drew attention for stating that “pesticides, cellphones, ultrasound” might be contributing to increased cases of Tourette syndrome and peanut allergies. He has also endorsed raw milk consumption, a practice that government health agencies warn can increase the risk of salmonella, E. coli, and listeria. Additionally, Kennedy has expressed skepticism about the link between HIV and AIDS.
