MAHA, a movement aimed at tackling the nation’s chronic disease epidemic through food, health and environmental reforms, has been deeply skeptical of Big Pharma, Big Agriculture, and Big Chemical.
MAHA groups have been strongly aligned with the Trump administration’s actions to date on vaccines and food.
But cracks are beginning to form.
MAHA-aligned groups and influencers are raising alarms about provisions in a House appropriations bill they say will shield pesticide and chemical manufacturers from accountability — and ultimately make Americans less healthy.
Meanwhile, a draft of the administration’s “MAHA Report” on children’s health reportedly omits any calls to prevent pesticide exposure, also disappointing advocates.
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his disciples espouse stricter environmental protections, while also bucking mainstream science on vaccine safety. Conservatives have traditionally sided with big business, supporting fewer regulations on potentially toxic substances.
So far, business interests appear to be winning. The industry-friendly draft of a report from a commission run by Kennedy shows just how much the White House has been able to rein him in.
“It’s obvious that there are tensions within this newfound coalition between MAHA and MAGA, and there are some big issues there,” said Mary Holland, CEO of Children’s Health Defense, an anti-vaccine group founded by Kennedy.
While the pesticide issues have generated some sparks between MAHA and MAGA, the administration has taken a number of other actions to also reduce restrictions on the chemical industry more broadly.
Trump himself exempted from environmental standards more than 100 polluters, including chemical manufacturers, oil refineries, coal plants and medical device sterilizers.
The EPA, meanwhile, has put chemical industry alumni in leading roles and has said it wants to loosen restrictions on emissions of various cancer-linked chemicals.
“Those factions, if you will — more protective of corporate and more challenging to corporate — are both striving to get the president’s ear, and I don’t think they’ve come to a complete, sort of settlement agreement,” Holland said.
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