Beshear asks President Trump to remove HHS Secretary RFK Jr. as measles and food-borne illness outbreaks continue

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear is calling on President Donald Trump to remove U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as the state and the country confront what Beshear described as growing risks from measles and food-borne illness outbreaks.

In his request, Beshear tied his call for a change in the leadership of the federal health department to ongoing concerns about public safety during a period when measles cases are continuing to increase and food-borne illnesses are also drawing attention, according to the coverage from LEX18 on November 12, 2026.

The call comes as states look to federal guidance and coordination for outbreak response, including communication to the public, support for surveillance and immunization efforts, and other federal health functions. Beshear’s request frames the personnel question as part of the broader question of whether the administration’s health leadership is positioned to manage the immediate challenges presented by the outbreaks.

Beshear’s action also places Kentucky’s chief executive in direct public contact with the president, seeking a federal leadership change rather than limiting his response to state-level measures. The governor’s comments, as reported by LEX18, emphasize that he believes the federal response needs adjustment as the national situation continues.

The LEX18 report did not describe specific immunization, inspection, or outbreak-control decisions that Beshear attributed to the secretary, but it said the governor’s request is connected to measles and food-borne illness developments that have not been contained. It also indicated that the governor’s call is being directed to the president rather than confined to messaging about federal agencies.

Under federal executive authority, the president has broad discretion to appoint and remove cabinet-level officials, including the HHS secretary. A change in the department leadership could affect how quickly the administration updates public-facing guidance and coordinates with states on outbreak response, though no timeline for any personnel decision was included in the reporting provided to this desk.

For Kentucky families and local health providers, the practical issue is how federal leadership aligns with state and local implementation of outbreak controls. The next steps, according to the context of the report, hinge on whether the president acts on Beshear’s request and what, if any, changes follow for federal health policy during the ongoing outbreaks.