Key facts
- Companies are paying for access to Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his health advocacy group, MAHA.
- Sponsorships for the MAHA Summit ranged from $20,000 to $100,000.
- Peptide Tracker CEO Kevin Miller negotiated a sponsorship down to $20,000 due to his startup status.
- Companies like Noom, Wells Pharmacy Network, and Hims & Hers are sponsors.
- Compass Pathways, Definium Therapeutics, and Helus Pharma, developers of psychedelic drugs, are sponsors.
- RFK Jr.'s associated political action committee has spent less than $800,000 and has less than $300,000 in cash.
Companies are paying for access to Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his health advocacy group, MAHA, with sponsorships for events like the MAHA Summit ranging from $20,000 to $100,000. Kevin Miller, CEO of Peptide Tracker, a phone app and summit sponsor, stated that being associated with MAHA provides a significant business differentiator. Peptide Tracker was launched in May for peptide users to track their dosage. Kennedy himself is a proponent of peptides, having expressed a desire to make 14 different peptides more readily available.
Other sponsors include Noom, Wells Pharmacy Network, and Hims & Hers, which plans to offer peptides later this year. Miller noted that while sponsorships typically cost more for those with speaking slots, he was able to negotiate his fee down due to his startup status.
Discussions at the summit cover topics such as artificial intelligence in healthcare, disease prevention and early detection, and modernizing the FDA. Several sponsors, including Compass Pathways, Definium Therapeutics, and Helus Pharma, are developers of psychedelic drugs for mental illness and are participating in panels. Compass Pathways is preparing to submit a new drug application to the FDA by year-end, Definium Therapeutics plans to file in the first half of 2027, and Helus Pharma expects to file in 2028. These companies stated their participation is driven by a desire to engage in dialogues around mental health treatment.
Emily Hilliard, senior HHS press secretary, clarified that department officials involved as speakers were not part of the summit's planning or sponsorship activities and were unaware of the financial arrangements. Despite corporate contributions, RFK Jr.'s associated political action committee, MAHA PAC, has raised and spent minimal funds, with less than $800,000 spent and under $300,000 in available cash, primarily directed towards opposing a Republican critic of Kennedy.