Hawaiʻi Gov. Josh Green plans to travel to Washington, D.C., on Sunday to meet with U.S. senators considering the controversial nomination of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to be secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services.

Green, an emergency room physician, is strongly opposed to the appointment, which was made by President-elect Donald Trump not long after the November election.

Green told Hawaiʻi News Now at the time that Kennedy “has absolutely no training in public health, no experience in public health, nor does he have any experience in biopharmacologic processes either. He is a quack scientist.”

A press release Thursday from the Green administration said the governor will provide “critical insight” into the implications of this nomination, “which has drawn opposition from numerous public health experts.”

The Senate will decide whether to confirm Kennedy. While he has the strong backing of Trump and some senators, critics say his views on vaccines are ill-informed and even dangerous.

As lieutenant governor in 2019, Green was part of an international effort to combat a measles epidemic in Samoa, according to a statement from his office.

“He worked on the front lines to vaccinate thousands of residents, helping to curb the outbreak and demonstrating the critical importance of science-based public health responses,” the statement said.

Green will return to Hawaiʻi on Thursday. Lt. Gov. Sylvia Luke will serve as acting governor.