COVID Crusader Writes Open Letter To RFK Jr On mRNA

Yahoo

5 hours ago

A prominent group of health activists is threatening a political revolt against HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. over what they call a betrayal of their movement's central cause.
In a blistering open letter dated June 4, COVID crusader Dr. Mary Talley Bowden and several allies from the MAHA (Make America Healthy Again) movement — a grassroots coalition of vaccine-critical and medical freedom activists — accused Kennedy and FDA Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary of watering down policies related to the controversial mRNA vaccine platform, especially in guidance affecting children and pregnant women.
'We did not fight for you to be in positions of leadership so that our clearly stated policy goals would suffer a 'bait and switch,'' Bowden wrote, warning Kennedy that MAHA voters 'can walk away' if their demands are not met. The letter criticizes recent CDC and FDA policy changes, calling them deceptive and insufficient, and claims the administration is engaging in 'linguistic misdirections' to hide the continued recommendation of mRNA shots for vulnerable populations.
The MAHA letter insists the mRNA platform — particularly COVID vaccines — should be pulled from the market entirely, citing adverse event data and peer-reviewed studies. It demands sweeping reforms: a full ban on mRNA technologies, repeal of the PREP Act, elimination of vaccine-related conflicts of interest in federal agencies, and an end to direct-to-consumer pharmaceutical advertising.
The signatories include author Naomi Wolf, podcaster Shannon Joy, and several other activists who rose to prominence during the COVID-19 pandemic by challenging government vaccine narratives.
The backlash comes amid growing scrutiny of RFK Jr.'s recent actions as HHS secretary. Once one the nation's most vocal mRNA vaccine skeptic, Kennedy has walked a careful line in office, telling Congress in May that his personal views on vaccines are 'irrelevant' and vowing not to make sudden changes to CDC policy.
'I don't think people should be taking medical advice from me,' Kennedy told lawmakers, as reported by The Hill on June 2.
Still, his critics on both sides see Kennedy's recent moves as consequential. Late last month, he released a 58-second video on X stating that COVID vaccines for healthy children and healthy pregnant women had been removed from the CDC's immunization schedule — a declaration Bowden and others say was misleading.
Indeed, as The Hill previously reported, the CDC quietly changed its guidance to say healthy children may receive the COVID vaccine after consultation with a healthcare provider, while maintaining stronger recommendations for other vulnerable categories. For pregnant women, the recommendation was similarly softened but not eliminated, and pregnancy remains classified by the FDA as a high-risk health condition, allowing continued vaccine use under certain circumstances.
Bowden's letter zeroes in on this ambiguity, arguing that wordplay is being used to sustain vaccine availability under the appearance of reform. 'Pregnant women have not been made any safer by your wordplay,' she writes, warning that MAHA activists are prepared to run their own candidates in upcoming elections if their demands are ignored.
The political threat underscores the friction between Kennedy and the movement that once celebrated his nomination. While Kennedy has taken steps to reshape HHS in ways consistent with his skepticism — including canceling hundreds of millions of dollars in funding for Moderna's mRNA flu vaccine— his first few months of actions have not thus far rendered the swift action that some would have hoped.
Former CDC acting director Dr. Richard Besser and other public health experts have voiced alarm at Kennedy's willingness to circumvent the CDC's vaccine advisory panel, which has traditionally guided immunization policy through public, evidence-based deliberation. 'We're seeing a total side-stepping of the nation's leading public health agency,' Besser told The Hill.
The vaccine panel has not yet weighed in on the updated COVID shot guidance. Its next meeting is scheduled for late June, and observers expect tense debate over whether Kennedy's changes represent science-based reform or political overreach.
In the meantime, Bowden's warning reflects the fragile coalition Kennedy is attempting to hold together. The MAHA movement — built in part from disaffected MAGA voters, vaccine skeptics, and parents concerned about government overreach — played a pivotal role in rallying support for Kennedy's confirmation and the broader medical freedom agenda.
Now, its leaders are openly questioning whether Kennedy's tenure will deliver the systemic change they demand — or whether they were simply used to fuel a political ascent.
'MAHA is not the possession of Secretary Kennedy,' Bowden wrote. 'It is the voice of millions of desperate parents… and their activism will outlast any administration.'
The Dallas Express reached out to HHS but did not immediately receive a response.
Kennedy previously spoke to The Dallas Express about a lawsuit Bowden brought against the FDA for misleading the public about using ivermectin for the treatment of COVID-19 during his presidential campaign in 2024 and just after the FDA settled the case.
'All three of the principal health agencies [CDC, NIH, FDA] suffer from agency capture,' Kennedy said. 'I would say 50% of the FDA's budget is from pharmaceutical companies. NIH scientists are allowed to collect royalties on drugs that they regulate –– which is clearly a conflict of interest. CDC … has devolved into an agency that primarily promotes the mercantile interests of the pharmaceutical companies.'
He told DX that the agencies are overly influenced by perverse incentives from the pharmaceutical industry and added, 'I will change those incentives and unravel the culture of corruption that now has turned these agencies against public health.'