CDC

The loss of special government employee status for four members of the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices follows the resignation of ACIP co-lead Lakshmi Panagiotakopoulos, who left in protest of a controversial change in COVID-19 recommendations for healthy children and pregnant women.

Vaccine skepticism is at an all-time high in the U.S., and HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is making some drastic moves in the name of reversing that trend. But misinformation and inconsistencies within the country’s healthcare agencies highlight problems with his approach.

Sanofi and BMS paid big money for rare disease and cancer assets, while Regeneron got in the obesity game; AstraZeneca, Gilead and Amgen shone at ASCO; RFK Jr. and the CDC appeared to disagree over COVID-19 vaccine recommendations and several news outlets are questioning the validity of the White House’s Make America Healthy Again report.

In a video posted to social media on Tuesday, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. claimed that there is a lack of clinical data to support the repeat COVID-19 booster strategy in children.

The advisory committee meeting comes days after the FDA unveiled a new risk-based approval framework for COVID-19 vaccines.

The new framework was well-received by biopharma analysts, who say it “largely formalizes” current COVID-19 vaccination trends.

The FDA and CDC have also recommended pausing the use of Ixchiq in seniors 60 years and older while safety investigations are ongoing.

When it comes to vaccination, the COVID-19 pandemic divided American society. President Donald Trump and his new Health and Human Services secretary are bringing down the hammer. What happens when there is no middle ground?

Such a change would put the U.S. more in line with guidance in other countries and with the World Health Organization, which recommends one dose for children and adolescents only if they have comorbidities.

The announcement by the Department of Health and Human Services highlighted a flurry of moves, which include the shifting of departments. Also this week, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. tapped fellow vaccine critic David Geier to investigate vaccine safety within the CDC.