Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. traveled to Oklahoma on Thursday to help Gov. Kevin Stitt roll out a “Make Oklahoma Healthy Again” campaign.
It’s the latest example of a conservative state embracing Kennedy’s MAHA platform. Kennedy has traveled around the country to tout initiatives like restrictions on artificial dyes, processed foods and fluoridated water.
“Oklahoma is 47th in health in the United States, and that’s not a good thing,” Kennedy said to the crowd.
“And I am so gratified about these actions that are now being taken by Governor Stitt to make Oklahoma Healthy Again,” he later added.
Stitt signed an executive order to change policy on food assistance programs, fluoride in water and artificial dyes in state-provided meals like school lunches.
The order instructs the state to “immediately cease any state-level promotion or endorsement of fluoridation of the public water supply,” conduct a “comprehensive review” of fluoride in Oklahoma’s water and revisit the state’s official position after the review is complete.
“Cities and water districts, they can still choose to do what they want based on their constituents and the science, but it’s no longer going to be a recommendation from the state health department,” Stitt said.
A “Make Oklahoma Healthy Again Initiative and Advisory Council” established by the order is tasked with “exploring the reduction or elimination of fluoridation of the public water
supply” and developing “public education campaigns focused on clean living, healthy eating, and reduced exposure to harmful toxins or substances,” among other action items.
The order also bans the use of artificial dyes in meals that Oklahoma’s state agencies pay for and provide and instructs the state to review the “presence and use” of the dyes in other programs, including the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families.
“This food is poisoning not only our health, but our mental health as well,” Kennedy said after describing studies he was able to find “very quickly on Google” that said changing prison food decreases violence, suicides and assaults in detention centers.
Separately, Stitt said the Oklahoma Department of Human Services has submitted a waiver to the Department of Agriculture that would change SNAP benefits “so our tax dollars are not going to continue to fund foods that are making people sick.” If the waiver is approved, SNAP would no longer cover things like soda and candy.
“I love the spirit behind the MAHA movement,” Stitt said. “A desire to improve health outcomes across America without government mandates.”
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Em Luetkemeyer is a NOTUS reporter and an Allbritton Journalism Institute fellow.
This story was produced as part of a partnership between NOTUS and Oklahoma Watch.