Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a former presidential candidate and environmental activist, endorsed Donald Trump last year and threw his weight behind a campaign to “Make America Healthy Again.” For the past two decades he has been best known for airing skeptical views on vaccines.

Kennedy's condition is called spasmodic dysphonia, which is a neurologic disorder that can affect the voice and speech by causing the muscles that generate a person’s voice to go into periods of spasm, according to Penn Medicine. It is a lifelong condition, but can be improved with treatment in some cases, according to Penn Medicine.

After watching 6-plus hours of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. testifying before two Senate committees, I have no idea whether he'll be confirmed as HHS secretary — I could see it going either way. Yes, but: It was still incredibly interesting to watch Kennedy reintroduce himself after decades in the public eye,

Kathleen "Kick" Kennedy is the eldest daughter of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who could be confirmed as health secretary in Trump's administration.

If confirmed by the Senate, Kennedy would head the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), which oversees many of the country’s health agencies, from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

One of the hottest topics in the coverage of his confirmation hearing was RFK Jr.'s unusually gruff speaking voice. But the raspy sound to his voice is not the result of an infection or respiratory condition;