Kyra Kennedy, 29, is the youngest daughter of health secretary nominee Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. cleared a crucial hurdle for confirmation as Health and Human Services secretary. Here's what happens next in the Senate

WASHINGTON (AP) — Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the controversial environmental lawyer turned public health critic, is set to find out on Tuesday if he has cleared the first hurdle to become the nation’s top health official when the Senate Finance Committee votes on his nomination.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s nomination passes crucial vote despite Democrats' 'grave concerns‘ - Kennedy has repeatedly promoted the debunked link between vaccines and autism

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will face the Senate for two days of confirmation hearings in a bid become the leader of Health and Human Services.

Sanders, the senior minority party member on the committee, pressed Kennedy to concede that health care was a human right, as his father, Robert F. Kennedy, and his uncles, John F. Kennedy and Edward Kennedy, had done. Kennedy again did not give a definitive answer.

Chairman of the Senate Health Committee Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) defended his Feb. 4 vote to advance Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to lead Health and Human Services.

The health committee chairman, Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., also has expressed concerns about Kennedy's anti-vaccine work. A physician, Cassidy said earlier this month he “had a frank conversation” and “spoke about vaccines at length” with Kennedy. On Tuesday, Cassidy told reporters that he is still unsure if he is backing Trump’s nominee.

The Finance Committee voted to forward the nomination of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for health secretary to the full Senate.