Sen. Baldwin presses RFK Jr. on Milwaukee's lead crisis, cuts to CDC programs
Posted: May 14, 2025 11:39 AM CDT
WISCONSIN (CBS 58) -- Senator Tammy Baldwin pressed the nation's top health official about Milwaukee's lead crisis during a Senate health budget hearing Wednesday afternoon.
It was a chance for Human and Health Services Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr. to defend the large cuts to his department's budget.
Kennedy admitted lead poisoning in children is a significant concern, but Sen. Baldwin said she didn't see actions to back that up.
"When a community asks for help for children and there is no one to pick up the phone, and it's not because the program is ineffective, it's because you fired the entire team whose job it was to support communities like Milwaukee," Sen. Baldwin said.
The CDC's Lead Poisoning Prevention Program was cut under Kennedy's leadership, impacting the city's ability to respond to the lead crisis.
Kennedy did say he will not eliminate that branch.