Kennedy-linked MAHA group sought $300,000 from companies for access to US health officials: Report

A nonprofit group linked to US Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. sought payments from companies in exchange for access to senior government health officials at an upcoming summit, according to a Bloomberg News investigation, putting a spotlight on the growing overlap between corporate interests, health policy and Kennedy's Make America Healthy Again movement.

Ahead of the September 29 MAHA Summit in Washington, sponsors were offered different packages, with the highest tier quoted at $300,000 to some prospective sponsors.

Bloomberg reported that the package included a speaking slot with input into the panel's composition and topic, as well as a private dinner for 30 guests with Kennedy and Mehmet Oz, head of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.

From AI to healthcare, corporate America is in the room

The controversy comes as the MAHA Summit increasingly brings together technology companies, healthcare businesses, insurers and senior US health officials.

The 2026 programme includes executives from OpenAI and Anthropic on AI panels, while UnitedHealth and Elevance executives are scheduled to appear on a session on healthcare affordability. Officials from HHS, CMS and the National Institutes of Health are also on the programme.

Companies listed as sponsors or participants include Anthropic, OpenAI, Walmart, Hims & Hers Health, Centene, Tempus AI and Compass Pathways, according to Bloomberg. The summit's official website also lists ResMed CEO Carlos Nunez alongside NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya and a panel involving psychedelic medicine companies and HHS Deputy General Counsel Matt Zorn.

That mix is significant because many of the companies represented at the summit operate in sectors overseen or regulated by the very agencies whose officials are participating. Bloomberg reported that a panel on psychedelics, for instance, includes companies in the sector and is moderated by an HHS deputy general counsel involved in psychedelics policy.

Questions over paid access to policymakers

The disclosures have raised questions about whether an outside organisation connected to a senior government official's political network should be able to use access to government policymakers as part of a sponsorship pitch.

HHS spokesperson Emily Hilliard told Bloomberg that department officials listed as speakers were not involved in planning or sponsorship activities for the summit and were unaware of the arrangements described in the report.

Tony Lyons, president of MAHA Center and a longtime Kennedy associate, did not directly answer questions about the sponsorship arrangements, Bloomberg reported. Lyons has previously been involved with organisations supporting Kennedy and the broader MAHA movement.

The issue is particularly notable because Kennedy has built his political brand around challenging what he describes as excessive corporate influence over America's health agencies. The Bloomberg report therefore puts the focus on a question at the heart of his own agenda: where does legitimate engagement between companies and policymakers end and paid access begin?

Richard Painter, a former chief ethics lawyer in George W. Bush's White House, told Bloomberg that the executive branch normally vets speaking requests involving administration officials to ensure their names are not being used to raise money for outside organisations.

The summit is scheduled for September 29 in Washington. Its official programme describes it as a gathering of leaders shaping how America eats, heals, researches and governs.