MAHA’s Toxic Impotence
The industry takeover of environmental regulations claims a new victim
[Revised in response to reader comments]
On December 4, Environmental Health Perspectives, the pre-eminent journal in environmental health, vanished. The website went dark and in an instant 52 years of the journal vanished from public view.
The Journal’s disappearance was shocking. What it tells us about MAHA and environmental health is worse.
Founded in 1972 as the official journal of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, EHP has published some of the most influential research ever produced on the health effects of toxic chemicals—pesticides, air pollution, PFAS, heavy metals—work that has shaped environmental and public-health policy for half a century.
In April, the Trump administration cut its funding.
A month earlier, Lee Zeldin declared March 12, the “greatest day of deregulation our nation has seen”. In May, he proposed cutting the EPA’s budget in half. Weeks later, RFK Jr. released the MAHA report, which devoted eleven pages to the risk of environmental exposures to children.
Apparently unimpressed by Kennedy’s concerns, Zeldin went on to eliminate the EPA Office of Research, drive hundreds of scientists out of the agency, and fire its scientific advisors.
Kennedy Literally Sells Out to the Chemical Industry
Lest anyone think Kennedy fought this tooth and nail, remember that the fate of EHP was in his hands. In June, the journal announced it would no longer accept submissions.
Last week, the American Chemical Society closed a deal to take over the journal. This is better than the disappearance of 52 years of the journal, which was still not restored at the time of this writing, the loss of independence is disconcerting. [I have received some pushback on my concerns about ACS from Bruce Lanphear and Matt Fisher and should clarify that the ACS is not a purely industry organization like the American Chemistry Council. I stand by the rest of what I said about RFK Jr’s lip service to environmental health, but will give ACS the benefit of the doubt until they prove otherwise. I am still deeply concerned that RFK Jr. allowed EHP to lose its independence.]
So, it appears that, while Kennedy is comfortable taking funding from pediatricians when they object to his indefensible cuts in vaccines, he is far less determined when taking on industry. Instead of preserving the autonomy of EHP, he pats himself on the back about removing food coloring from children’s candies. (Yes, petrochemicals don’t belong in our food, but the sugar in those products is far worse for children than the dyes.) Now it appears that even that token effort may fail.
Final Score: Industry 1 Public Health Integrity 0.