Draft MAHA strategy avoids new crackdown on food and farming practices
The White House previously promised agriculture groups that the strategy would not include cracking down on pesticides and told food companies and lobbyists that it wouldn't allow the MAHA Commission to surprise them with new ingredient targets or regulations. Those moves have drawn the ire of MAHA advocates, who stress the importance of ridding the food supply of pesticides and have brought their concerns directly to the president this week.
Food
The strategy on food policy mirrors what HHS officials have already said publicly that they'd pursue: voluntary commitments from companies on the transition to natural food dyes, defining 'ultra-processed foods,' updating the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, reforming the 'generally recognized as safe' designation, requiring front-of-pack labeling, and ensuring safe and high-quality infant formula.
HHS and the FTC will additionally be instructed to investigate and crack down on the marketing of ultra-processed foods to children and 'improve' the quality of foods offered to veterans and in hospitals.
Vaccines
According to the draft, HHS and the Domestic Policy Council will develop a framework for 'ensuring America has the best childhood vaccine schedule' and addressing injuries from vaccines. Kennedy and other anti-vaccine activists have alleged — despite scientific evidence to the contrary — that the dozens of shots received during childhood contribute to increased rates of chronic conditions like autism and ADHD in kids.
The framework will also focus on 'ensuring scientific and medical freedom' and 'correcting conflict of interest and misaligned incentives.'
Anti-vaccine groups like Children's Health Defense, which Kennedy founded before joining the government, claim that pediatricians are financially rewarded for ensuring their patients stick to the CDC's childhood vaccine schedule. The American Academy of Pediatrics has refuted that argument, and research shows most practices lose money on vaccinating patients.
The draft report says HHS will collaborate with the National Institutes of Health's allergy and infectious disease center to 'investigate vaccine injuries with improved data collection and analysis.' The effort will include a new research program at the NIH Clinical Center that could expand nationwide.
Some vaccine scientists have called on policymakers to boost federal funding for safety research to respond to dwindling public confidence in immunizations. While severe side effects are rare, the number of affected people can be significant when large populations are vaccinated.
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