Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced on April 7 that he will tell the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to stop recommending fluoridation in municipal water nationwide.
Kennedy also said the HHS will reconvene the Community Preventive Services Task Force, an independent panel composed of public health and prevention experts, “to study and make a new recommendation on fluoride.”
Kennedy disclosed the plans to the Associated Press on Monday during an event in Salt Lake City, where he was joined by Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin as part of a Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) tour.
The EPA said on April 7 that it is reviewing “new scientific information” on potential health risks of fluoride in drinking water. The agency has the authority to set the maximum level of fluoridation in public water systems.
Kennedy is an outspoken opponent of fluoride in water, calling it an “industrial waste” and “dangerous neurotoxin” on the presidential campaign trail last year.
Last month, Utah became the first state to prevent fluoride in public drinking water when Republican Gov. Spencer Cox signed the legislation. Water systems in communities across the state must stop adding the mineral by May 7.
Flanked by Utah legislators, Kennedy praised the state for emerging as “the leader in making America healthy again” on April 7.
“It makes no sense to have it in our water supply. And I’m very, very proud of this state for being the first state to ban it. And I hope many more will come,” Kennedy said.
Utah state Rep. Stephanie Gricius, a Republican and chief sponsor of the bill, said it allows pharmacists to prescribe fluoride for those wanting the mineral’s protection for their teeth.
“I believe in individual choice when it comes to what prescriptions we put into our bodies and fluoride is federally regulated as a prescription,” Gricius told Reuters last month.
“Community water fluoridation and informed consent, which is foundational to good health care, cannot coexist.”
The American Dental Association (ADA), which supports widespread water fluoridation, wrote in a February letter to Cox that he should veto the bill because it is “in complete opposition” to the organization’s mission.
The ADA said the measure would “take away the most effective, efficient and equitable way for dental disease prevention.”
Lawmakers in Ohio, South Carolina, and Florida have also proposed restrictions on fluoridated water.
Though the CDC’s recommendations are generally followed, state and local governments determine if their communities will add fluoride to water. It cannot surpass the maximum number established by the EPA, which is currently 4 milligrams per liter.
In 2011, the EPA decreased the amount of allowable fluoride in water following a report from the National Academy of Sciences that discovered some thyroid and arthritic symptoms might occur under maximum limits at the time.
“As soon as I was nominated by President Trump as administrator of the EPA, the secretary instantly reached out to start talking about issues that he is so passionate about. And number one on that list was fluoride,” Zeldin said.
Lee Zeldin, then a New York congressman nominated for EPA chief, speaks during his Senate confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill on Jan. 16, 2025. Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
Federal officials endorsed water fluoridation in 1950 to prevent tooth decay.
Drinking water is the main source of fluoride for Americans, the Associated Press reported. According to CDC data, around two-thirds of the U.S. population consumes fluoridated drinking water.
Zeldin noted that the EPA was exploring scientific studies regarding the potential health risks of fluoride in drinking water to “inform the agency’s future steps” on national standards.
“Secretary Kennedy has long been at the forefront of this issue. His advocacy was instrumental in our decision to review fluoride exposure risks, and we are committed to working alongside him, utilizing sound science as we advance our mission of protecting human health and the environment,” Zeldin said on April 7.
Days before the presidential election last November, Kennedy wrote in a post on X that one of Trump’s first acts in office would be to advise U.S. water systems to remove fluoride from public water.
Last week, the CDC’s Division of Oral Health was eliminated as part of widespread HHS staff cuts.
The division had been tasked with promoting what it deemed the safety and benefits of community water fluoridation.
Medical groups and public health experts have long claimed that fluoride can strengthen teeth and reduce cavities.
Over time, studies have documented potential problems.
A federal judge in California last year ordered the EPA to review the risks of adding fluoride to drinking water.
Since that ruling, several towns and cities have moved to end fluoridation.
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., center, speaks during a press conference about Utah's new fluoride ban, food additives, and SNAP funds legislation in Salt Lake City on April 7, 2025. Melissa Majchrzak/AP Photo
On April 7, Kennedy cited a study conducted last year by the federal National Toxicology Program, which found a link between higher fluoride exposure and lower IQ in children. The agency used studies involving fluoride levels at around twice the recommended limit for drinking water.
Kennedy warned that fluoride in water can also cause hyperthyroidism and osteoarthritis, among other conditions. Adding fluoride to water “clearly is doing harm” and is undermining freedom of choice, he added.
“We shouldn’t be demanding that parents accept something for their children and in their homes, that is essentially a medication,” Kennedy said.
