Story perspectives
RFK Jr. Calls Birth-Rate Crisis; Trump Backs Fertility Benefits Rule
5/13/2026
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Story summary
- Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. warned on May 11, 2026 that the U.S. birth-rate decline is a crisis tied to environmental toxins.
- He said the department is studying endocrine disruptors and pesticides, noting women’s fertility has fallen since 2007 and teenage boys now have half the 1970 sperm count.
- President Donald Trump voiced alarm over the decline, supporting a rule to simplify employer-provided fertility benefits, including IVF.
