Several of the senators set to vote on Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s appointment to lead the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) have received donations from pharmaceutical companies.
Between 2019 and 2024, lawmakers on the Senate Finance Committee received more than $6.7 million from Big Pharma, according to an analysis conducted by The Federalist.
Republican senators received the majority of these contributions. Sen. Thom Tillis (NC) received more than $679,000, Sen. Bill Cassidy (LA) received $667,000, and Sen. Tim Scott (SC) received $564,000.
Among Democrats, Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (NV) received nearly $460,000, followed by Sen. Maggie Hassen (NH) with $360,000, and Sen. Ron Wyden (OR) with $352,000.
The donations may not indicate that the senators are biased. Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) received more than $214,000 from the pharmaceutical industry, but has voiced support for Kennedy.
Stocks for Moderna, BioNTech, and Novavax fell after President-elect Donald Trump tapped Kennedy to head the HHS. According to data collected by Axios, Moderna fell 5.6%, BioNTech fell 7.1%, and Novavax fell 7.2%.
