The media was outraged that Trump appointed an outspoken anti-vaccine activist to head the nation’s most important health agency. Nonpartisan medical experts have also expressed concerns about Kennedy’s views on vaccines, unpasteurized milk, the use of fluoride to prevent tooth decay, and his comments on edible oils and food safety in general.

To be sure, many of Kennedy’s views run counter to accepted science on health care and food safety. On the other hand, his views regarding obesity, food additives, and sugar-containing foods should be taken seriously by the public. He deserves a fair hearing before the senators who will vote on his nomination.

At the same time, stock markets were wrong to jump to the conclusion that if Kennedy were confirmed as HHS secretary, it would hurt the health care industry. Kennedy alone would not be able to approve or disapprove applications for new drugs. Medical experts make these decisions. Science, not ill-informed bias, determines the approval process for drugs and vaccines. The HHS Secretary executes the laws. They do not pass laws regarding drug pricing, drug and vaccine approval, and health care in general. Kennedy would be an administrator, not a health care czar.

Following Kennedy’s appointment, stocks in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical sectors came under selling pressure. Traders sold the news and did not consider the real possibility that Kennedy’s nomination would not be approved by the Senate. Additionally, as previously noted, Kennedy would not be able to stop the development and approval of new potentially life-saving drugs, including vaccines.

With the integration of artificial intelligence in the healthcare sector, the medical world is at the doorstep of revolutionary healthcare treatments. More cancers will be defeated with vaccines. Bullet type radiation and chemical treatments will also be deployed to beat cancer. Science will also use messenger RNA technology to design health treatments tailored to each individual.

Conclusion: The outlook for the healthcare sector is profoundly positive. This is particularly important as the United States faces the challenges of an aging population. The healthcare sector sell-off presents a buying opportunity, regardless of the outcome of Kennedy’s nomination.

Kennedy is wrong about vaccines. Operation Warp Speed, the crowning achievement of the first Trump administration, saved hundreds of millions of lives around the world and allowed the reopening of the American economy and schools. COVID-19 vaccines were the product of revolutionary pharmaceutical development and capitalism. Vaccines save lives. They largely defeated smallpox, polio, mumps and measles.

However, Kennedy is correct that the United States faces an obesity crisis that costs the country hundreds of billions of dollars each year. The public should hear what they have to say about food additives, including food coloring. After all, many food colors used in the United States are banned in Western Europe.

Let the democratic process work. The Senate should hear from Kennedy and decide whether his positive views outweigh his unscientific and downright false views.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ON RESTORING AMERICA

James Rogan is a former U.S. Foreign Service Officer who went on to work for 30 years in finance and law. He writes a daily note on markets, politics and society. He can be reached at (email protected).