WATCH: RFK Jr. says firings at CDC were ‘necessary,’ blames organization for failed COVID policy

HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. made his opening statement before the Senate Finance Committee on Thursday, making a debunked claim that half-a-million children went missing during the Biden administration and defending the removal of CDC officials who he said were responsible for “nonsensical” policies during the COVID pandemic.

WATCH: RFK Jr. testifies on Trump’s health care agenda before the Senate Finance Committee

“These changes were absolutely necessary adjustments to restore the agency to its role as the world’s gold standard public health agency with the central mission of protecting Americans from infectious disease,” Kennedy said.

“[The] CDC failed that responsibility miserably during COVID when its disastrous, nonsensical policies destroyed small businesses, violated civil liberties, closed our schools, caused generational damage in doing so, masked infants with no science, and heightened economic inequality,” Kennedy said.

Kennedy appeared before the Senate Committee on Finance a day after more than 20 medical societies and organizations called for his resignation. They cited “repeated efforts to undermine science and public health,” most recently the firing of CDC Director Susan Monarez over vaccine science and the resulting resignations of other leaders at the organization.

During his tenure, the health secretary and former anti-vaccine advocate has narrowed long-standing U.S. vaccine recommendations. He’s also replaced a key panel of medical experts with his hand-picked candidates ahead of the start of the respiratory virus season in the United States.