Health and Human Services Director Robert Kennedy Jr. on Tuesday proposed 120 initiatives to reverse federal laws that cause chronic childhood diseases.

Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. unveiled a strategy to counteract chronic childhood diseases in the United States during a Tuesday afternoon news conference in Washington. Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI UPI

Sept. 9 (UPI) -- Health and Human Services Director Robert Kennedy Jr. on Tuesday proposed 120 initiatives to reverse federal policies that he says cause chronic childhood diseases.

The initiatives are spread among five key strategic areas that involve science, executive action, governmental reforms, public awareness and collaboration with the private sector.

"The Trump administration is mobilizing every part of the government to confront the childhood chronic disease epidemic," Kennedy said in a news release.

"This strategy represents the most sweeping reform agenda in modern history [by] realigning our food and health systems, driving education and unleashing science to protect America's children and families," he said.

"We are ending the corporate capture of public health, restoring transparency and putting gold standard science -- not special interests -- at the center of every decision."

The strategy calls for expanding government research into chronic disease prevention, reforming dietary guidelines to remove harmful chemicals and other substances, and increasing oversight and enforcement of direct-to-consumer prescription drug advertising laws.

The strategy also seeks to streamline organic certification and ease barriers to farm-to-school food programs and direct-to-consumer sales, restoring whole milk in schools, improving the quality of food served in schools, hospitals and to veterans and improving infant formula standards.

Other proposed changes include launching school-based nutrition and fitness campaigns, prioritizing pediatric mental health and improving parental access to reliable nutrition and health information.

Serving more healthful meals in restaurants, improving soil health and land stewardship, and other community-led initiatives also are encouraged to address the root causes of chronic childhood diseases.

The strategy "provides a blueprint for the entire government to focus on solving the chronic disease crisis facing American children," said Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, director of the National Institutes of Health.

"We must make America healthy again so our children live longer and healthier lives than we will," he added.

The initiatives are a product of the Make America Healthy Again Commission that President Donald Trump established in February and tasked with investigating and proposing solutions for childhood chronic diseases.

Kennedy and other commission members announced the strategy during a Washington news conference on Tuesday afternoon.

The 20-page document does not say how the initiative would be funded and includes items that run counter to recent Trump administration actions, The New York Times reported.

Examples cited include sowing doubt about the safety of recent COVID-19 vaccines and limiting access to Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits.

The strategy includes reforming schedules for childhood vaccines and addressing vaccine injuries, while eliminating possible conflicts of interest through science, according to Stat 10.

The report also lacks details on how policies would be implemented, The New York Times reported.