Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has withdrawn a proposed FDA rule that would’ve banned tanning bed use for minors.
“The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is announcing the withdrawal of the proposed rule titled ‘General and Plastic Surgery Devices: Restricted Sale, Distribution, and Use of Sunlamp Products,’ which published in the Federal Register of December 22, 2015,” RFK Jr. the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services for President Donald Trump’s administration, wrote in a March 2026 withdrawal letter.
“FDA is taking this action because it no longer intends to finalize the proposed rule,” the controversial HHS secretary continued, citing “support for personal choice and parental decision-making; availability and relative safety of sunlamp production alternatives; and compliance burdens on small businesses.”
“In light of the scientific and technical concerns raised in the comments on the Proposed Rule, concerns regarding possible unintended consequences of certain proposals in the Proposed Rule, and potential alternatives proposed in comments received on the Proposed Rule, FDA is withdrawing the Proposed Rule in order to reconsider the best means for addressing the issues covered by the Proposed Rule and related issues regarding access to sunlamp products,” Kennedy added.
While skin cancer remains the most common form of cancer — an estimated 1 in 5 Americans develop skin cancer at some point in their lifetime, according to the American Academy of Dermatology — wellness influencers have increasingly advocated for more sun exposure while denouncing sunscreen and similar products as harmful or toxic.
Dr. Vinod Nambudiri, a dermatologist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, told The New York Times that people should at the very least use a sunscreen with a SPF of at least 30, adding, “There’s no harm in going higher, though.”
RFK Jr., who ran for president in 2024 before ending his candidacy and endorsing now-President Trump, is known for espousing conspiracy theories related to healthcare, including denouncing vaccines and arguing that Black people have different immune systems.
In 2021, Kennedy claimed that Black people should follow a different vaccine schedule than white people because their immune systems are “stronger” – a racist medical trope that has long been debunked.
During a February 12 appearance on the ‘This Past Weekend With Theo Von” podcast, RFK Jr. said he isn’t “afraid” of germs because he used to do drugs off toilet seats.
“I’m not scared of a germ,” he said at the time. “I used to snort cocaine off of toilet seats. I know this disease [addiction] will kill me. If I don’t treat it, which for me means going to meetings everyday, it’s just bad for my life. For me, it was just survival.”
