How much longer can responsible people work for President Trump’s Department of Health and Human Services under the leadership of Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.?

That question arises every time Kennedy pulls funding for vaccine research or purges respected scientists at the Centers for Disease Control, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force or the Food and Drug Administration.

For a while, it looked like even vaccine critics weren’t safe in the Trump administration.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Vinay Prasad established his reputation as a contrarian, expressing reservations about pediatric vaccination and several common mitigation measures. It was thus no surprise when he was appointed director of the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, which covers vaccine policy.

Prasad didn’t last three months on the job. He resigned abruptly in late July following attacks by right-wing figures such as Laura Loomer, who labeled him a “progressive leftist saboteur.”

A Health and Human Services statement cited Prasad’s desire to spend more time with his family. It has been widely reported, however, that Trump himself forced Prasad’s departure, despite the objection of FDA Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary.

In another abrupt move, only 10 days later, Prasad abruptly returned to the FDA, evidently at Makary’s request but otherwise without........

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