Kennedy would preserve authorized charges from Merck instances if confirmed

By Dan Levine and Mike Spector

(Reuters) – Robert F. Kennedy Jr. would retain authorized charges earned from litigation in opposition to drugmaker Merck (NSE:PROR) if he’s confirmed as President Donald Trump’s secretary of the U.S. Division of Well being and Human Companies, in response to a federal ethics disclosure made public on Wednesday.

Kennedy, who ended his personal presidential marketing campaign final yr to endorse Trump, is ready for a U.S. Senate listening to on his nomination subsequent week. As HHS secretary, Kennedy would wield monumental affect over the pharma business, and the nomination is opposed by a number of well being and client organizations over Kennedy’s function in sowing doubt concerning the security and efficacy of vaccines.

Reuters reported final week that Kennedy performed an instrumental function in organizing mass litigation in opposition to Merck over its human papillomavirus shot Gardasil. One of many most important legal professionals suing Merck, Michael Baum, instructed Reuters that Kennedy “taught us” the right way to pursue Gardasil claims exterior a particular government-run vaccine compensation program that limits pharma firm legal responsibility.

Kennedy has an association to earn 10 p.c of charges awarded in contingency instances he refers to Baum’s agency WisnerBaum, in response to a letter Kennedy wrote to an HHS ethics official launched on Wednesday. If confirmed, Kennedy would retain that monetary curiosity in instances that don’t immediately affect the U.S. authorities, the letter stated.

Kennedy and Baum didn’t instantly reply to requests for remark. Merck declined to remark.

Excessive-level U.S. authorities officers routinely disclose monetary pursuits and potential conflicts throughout the nomination course of.

Kennedy wrote that he’s “not an lawyer of report” for his WisnerBaum instances. Nevertheless, Kennedy filed official court docket appearances in a number of Gardasil instances, together with one set for trial in Los Angeles this week, court docket dockets present. As of Wednesday, Kennedy had not appeared to have withdrawn from them.

In a separate ethics disclosure, Kennedy reported at the least $857,000 from WisnerBaum, and didn’t specify which instances generated that earnings. Kennedy has collaborated with WisnerBaum on litigation over Monsanto (NYSE:MON)’s weed killer Roundup.

The Gardasil lawsuits allege Merck had fraudulently marketed the vaccine as protected, overstating its advantages whereas concealing data of harmful negative effects. Merck says the instances haven’t any advantage and that analysis helps the protection of its HPV vaccines.