Former congressman Patrick Kennedy offered an unexpected defense of his controversial cousin Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Tuesday, arguing that “on addiction policy, I believe he is the leader we need to meet this moment.”
In a Washington Post letter to the editor, Patrick Kennedy cited his cousin’s unconditional support of his use of antidepressants and, later, his recovery from opioid addiction, during which he relied on the medication buprenorphine. RFK Jr. has criticized antidepressants in the past. And though he is himself in recovery from opioid addiction, he has said little about buprenorphine or methadone, another effective but often-stigmatized medication used to treat opioid addiction, prompting concerns among many addiction medicine experts.
The former Democratic lawmaker’s supportive statement was published a day before Kennedy Jr., who is President Trump’s nominee to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, faces a set of pivotal Senate confirmation hearings. It also came the same day as the Post reported on a separate letter in which another cousin accused Kennedy Jr. of leading relatives “down the path of substance abuse.”
To portray Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as “fundamentally opposed to modern medicine is misinformed and seems more calibrated to advance a political narrative than to help those struggling with addiction,” his younger cousin wrote in the letter. “I know that from personal experience. I’ve been sober for more than 13 years, but during my acute addiction to opioids, I received medication-assisted treatment, using buprenorphine, and later managed my depression with antidepressants.”
The elder Kennedy was “unwaveringly supportive of me throughout our time together in 12-step recovery,” Patrick Kennedy wrote, even though his addiction-treatment journey made use of medications that sometimes face pushback in recovery circles.
Patrick Kennedy’s defense of his cousin is surprising not just because it represents a Democratic lawmaker appearing to endorse the confirmation of a deeply controversial Republican nominee, but because it stands at odds with most of the Kennedy family.
Also on Tuesday, the Washington Post reported that Caroline Kennedy, another cousin, had written a letter to senators in which she called Robert F. Kennedy Jr. a “predator” who led siblings and cousins “down the path of substance abuse.” Well before he was nominated to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, other family members had denounced Kennedy for spreading falsehoods and stirring skepticism about vaccines.
In his letter to the editor, Patrick Kennedy sought to cast his cousin as a nuanced thinker who is open-minded about how to best end the long-running U.S. drug crisis.
Despite his own journey overcoming addiction to alcohol and opioids, Robert F. Kennedy’s views on addiction medicine remain largely mysterious. In particular, he has said little about methadone and buprenorphine, which are highly effective but remain underutilized.
During his independent bid for president in 2024, Kennedy filmed a documentary focused on addiction and expressed support for “tough love” policies in which police would play a greater role clearing people who use drugs from public spaces and forcing them into treatment under threat of incarceration.
His vision for treatment largely centers on a nationwide system of “wellness farms” that he has said should be funded via a tax on federally legalized marijuana. But his vision for who should be included is at odds with medical consensus — at times, he has suggested that addiction treatment shouldn’t just include people dependent on substances like fentanyl or cocaine but also those taking certain antidepressants at their doctor’s direction.
It’s also unclear what form treatment at these farms would take. Many such farms currently in existence discourage or outright prohibit use of methadone and buprenorphine, sometimes referred to as medication-assisted treatment or MAT. So, too, do many of the 12-step programs that Kennedy has espoused, including Narcotics Anonymous.
In his letter, Patrick Kennedy argued that his cousin doesn’t oppose the use of medications.
“Critics argue this approach risks sidelining evidence-based treatments such as MAT, but Bobby’s intent is not to reject medication; in my understanding, it is to complement traditional care with a focus on connection and purpose, often overlooked in conventional medical models.”
The Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions will hold a confirmation hearing for Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Wednesday, but doesn’t play a formal role in advancing his nomination to the full Senate. The Senate Finance Committee, which formally controls Kennedy’s fate, will hold its own hearing on Thursday.
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