Latest news with #DepartmentofHealthandHumanService
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
HHS cancels funding for bird flu vaccine development because of RNA concerns
The Department of Health and Human Service is pulling millions of dollars in funding for a human bird flu vaccine developed by Covid vaccine-maker Moderna. Before President Donald Trump took office for his second term, the Biden administration had awarded $766 million to the Massachusetts-based drugmaker. They invested $176 million last summer, and tacked on another $590 million in January. "While the termination of funding from HHS adds uncertainty, we are pleased by the robust immune response and safety profile observed in this interim analysis of the Phase 1/2 study of our H5 avian flu vaccine and we will explore alternative paths forward for the program," Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel said in a statement. "These clinical data in pandemic influenza underscore the critical role mRNA technology has played as a countermeasure to emerging health threats." HHS spokesman Andrew Nixon assured The Independent that the decision was made after a 'rigorous review.' 'This is not simply about efficacy — it's about safety, integrity, and trust,' he said. 'The reality is that mRNA technology remains under-tested, and we are not going to spend taxpayer dollars repeating the mistakes of the last administration, which concealed legitimate safety concerns from the public.' Nixon also said that the move signals a 'shift in federal vaccine funding priorities with better-established safety profiles and transparent data.' The department said Moderna's project does not meet the scientific standards or safety expectations required for continued federal investment, and that the decision reflects broader concerns about mRNA use. It noted that there are three other avian flu contracts under the National Prepandemic Influenza Vaccine Stockpile program. Researchers have been studying and working with mRNA vaccines for decades, for flu, Zika, rabies, and cytomegalovirus, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The vaccines work by using mRNA, a type of RNA, that is created in a laboratory to teach our cells how to make a protein that triggers an immune response inside our bodies. The news comes amid the continued and pervasive spread of H5N1 bird flu, which has killed millions of birds, mammals, and other animals across the U.S. in recent years. In response to infections that resulted in a nationwide egg shortage, the Trump administration's Department of Agriculture included vaccine investments in its $1 billion-dollar plan, allocating up to $100 million for research in that area. 'USDA will be hyper-focused on a targeted and thoughtful strategy for potential new generation vaccines, therapeutics, and other innovative solutions to minimize depopulation of egg laying chickens along with increased bio-surveillance and other innovative solutions targeted at egg laying chickens in and around outbreaks,' it said. Of course, that proposal came before vaccine-skeptic and HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., made his own: mass infections. Experts said that was a bad idea. Since then, however, reports of new human cases have stopped. That's been puzzling to experts. To date, 70 people have been infected, most of whom are farm workers. 'We just don't know why there haven't been cases,' Jennifer Nuzzo, director of the Pandemic Center at Brown University, told NPR. 'I think we should assume there are infections that are occurring in farmworkers that just aren't being detected.' It may also be tied to seasonality, with cases peaking in the fall and winter as bird migrate. So, the need for a vaccine for humans, such as Moderna's mRNA-108, likely remains. The administration's decision comes as Moderna announced positive interim results from an early-stage trial of the vaccine. "What we learned clearly during the last influenza pandemic is there are only a few companies in the world that make flu vaccines, which means in a pandemic there won't be enough to go around,' Nuzzo said, reacting to the news. 'If the U.S. wants to make sure it can get enough vaccines for every American who wants them during a pandemic, it should invest in multiple types of vaccines instead of putting all of our eggs in one basket." With reporting from The Associated Press
Yahoo
03-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Notorious vaccine skeptic RFK Jr finally urges people to get measles jab after deadly outbreak
Longtime vaccine skeptic Robert F Kennedy Jr has urged people to get the measles jab after a deadly outbreak in Texas – having initially downplayed the rapid spread of the infectious disease. Writing in a Fox News op-ed Sunday, the freshly-confirmed Department of Health and Human Service secretary championed the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine, touting its efficacy against the deadly virus. 'Measles outbreak is call to action for all of us,' reads the title, with the standfirst stating: 'MMR vaccine is crucial to avoiding potentially deadly disease.' In the article's opening line, RFK Jr stated he is 'deeply concerned about the recent measles outbreak.' He reflected on the days before the first measles vaccine was licensed for public use in the U.S. in 1963. 'Prior to the introduction of the (MMR) vaccine in the 1960s, virtually every child in the United States contracted measles,' RFK Jr citing that from 1953 to 1962, there were an average of 530,217 confirmed cases and 440 deaths – a one in 1,205 cases fatality rate. The Kennedy scion said that it is the government's responsibility to ensure that accurate information is relayed about vaccine safety and efficacy, and pledged to 'make vaccines readily accessible for all those who want them.' He added: 'Vaccines not only protect individual children from measles, but also contribute to community immunity, protecting those who are unable to be vaccinated due to medical reasons. RFK Jr did, however, emphasize that the decision to vaccinate is 'a personal one.' According to the latest figures from the Texas Department of Health and Human Services released Friday, 146 measles cases have been identified since late January – a majority of whom appear to be unvaccinated. An unvaccinated school-age child in Lubbock marked the first death from the highly contagious virus last week and twenty other people have been hospitalized. After the death Wednesday, the nation's top health official appeared to downplay the situation in Texas and described the outbreak as 'not unusual.' 'There have been four measles outbreaks this year in this country. Last year there were 16. So it's not unusual," he said during Donald Trump's first cabinet meeting. 'We have measles outbreaks every year.' RFK Jr's latest remarks appear to mark a U-turn from his previous peddling of vaccine skepticism and conspiracy theories, including his promotion of the debunked idea that vaccines cause autism. Along with his comments about vaccines and autism, the HHS secretary has made other historic inflammatory remarks, including suggesting in January 2022 that Anne Frank was in a better situation when she hid from Nazis than Americans were under Covid-19 mandates. He also baselessly claimed that Covid-19 was a 'bioweapon' that targets 'Caucasians and Black people' while sparing Ashkenazi Jewish and Chinese people. Spreading Covid-19 misinformation resulted in Meta deactivating his Instagram account in 2021. During his Senate confirmation hearings last month, he attempted to clean up his previous remarks and insisted he is not anti-vaccine, but 'pro-safety.' RFK Jr denied Oregon Senator Ron Wyden's accusations that he 'embraced conspiracy theories, quacks, charlatans, especially when it comes to the safety and efficacy of vaccines,' and noted his own children are vaccinated. Vaccine hesitancy was already a concern before the Covid-19 pandemic and worsened during the vaccination campaigns, experts told the Washington Post. According to a survey from the University of Pennsylvania's Annenberg Public Policy Center last June, nearly one in four respondents believed that the MMR vaccine caused autism. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said there is no evidence linking the measles vaccine and autism. In August 2024, the findings from an Annenberg Science and Public Health survey suggested that more than a quarter of Americans believe that Covid-19 vaccines have caused thousands of deaths.
The Independent
03-03-2025
- Health
- The Independent
Notorious vaccine skeptic RFK Jr finally urges people to get measles jab after deadly outbreak
Longtime vaccine skeptic Robert F Kennedy Jr has urged people to get the measles jab after a deadly outbreak in Texas – having initially downplayed the rapid spread of the infectious disease. Writing in a Fox News op-ed Sunday, the freshly-confirmed Department of Health and Human Service secretary championed the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine, touting its efficacy against the deadly virus. 'Measles outbreak is call to action for all of us,' reads the title, with the standfirst stating: ' MMR vaccine is crucial to avoiding potentially deadly disease.' In the article's opening line, RFK Jr stated he is 'deeply concerned about the recent measles outbreak.' He reflected on the days before the first measles vaccine was licensed for public use in the U.S. in 1963. 'Prior to the introduction of the (MMR) vaccine in the 1960s, virtually every child in the United States contracted measles,' RFK Jr citing that from 1953 to 1962, there were an average of 530,217 confirmed cases and 440 deaths – a one in 1,205 cases fatality rate. The Kennedy scion said that it is the government's responsibility to ensure that accurate information is relayed about vaccine safety and efficacy, and pledged to 'make vaccines readily accessible for all those who want them.' He added: 'Vaccines not only protect individual children from measles, but also contribute to community immunity, protecting those who are unable to be vaccinated due to medical reasons. RFK Jr did, however, emphasize that the decision to vaccinate is 'a personal one.' According to the latest figures from the Texas Department of Health and Human Services released Friday, 146 measles cases have been identified since late January – a majority of whom appear to be unvaccinated. An unvaccinated school-age child in Lubbock marked the first death from the highly contagious virus last week and twenty other people have been hospitalized. After the death Wednesday, the nation's top health official appeared to downplay the situation in Texas and described the outbreak as 'not unusual.' 'There have been four measles outbreaks this year in this country. Last year there were 16. So it's not unusual," he said during Donald Trump's first cabinet meeting. 'We have measles outbreaks every year.' RFK Jr's latest remarks appear to mark a U-turn from his previous peddling of vaccine skepticism and conspiracy theories, including his promotion of the debunked idea that vaccines cause autism. Along with his comments about vaccines and autism, the HHS secretary has made other historic inflammatory remarks, including suggesting in January 2022 that Anne Frank was in a better situation when she hid from Nazis than Americans were under Covid-19 mandates. He also baselessly claimed that Covid-19 was a 'bioweapon' that targets 'Caucasians and Black people' while sparing Ashkenazi Jewish and Chinese people. Spreading Covid-19 misinformation resulted in Meta deactivating his Instagram account in 2021. During his Senate confirmation hearings last month, he attempted to clean up his previous remarks and insisted he is not anti-vaccine, but 'pro-safety.' RFK Jr denied Oregon Senator Ron Wyden's accusations that he 'embraced conspiracy theories, quacks, charlatans, especially when it comes to the safety and efficacy of vaccines,' and noted his own children are vaccinated. Vaccine hesitancy was already a concern before the Covid-19 pandemic and worsened during the vaccination campaigns, experts told the Washington Post. According to a survey from the University of Pennsylvania's Annenberg Public Policy Center last June, nearly one in four respondents believed that the MMR vaccine caused autism. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said there is no evidence linking the measles vaccine and autism. In August 2024, the findings from an Annenberg Science and Public Health survey suggested that more than a quarter of Americans believe that Covid-19 vaccines have caused thousands of deaths.
Axios
31-01-2025
- Health
- Axios
Trump signs executive order to defund youth gender-affirming care
President Trump issued an executive order on Tuesday attempting to ban federal funding or support for youth gender-affirming care. The big picture: The policy is the administration's latest in a series of attacks against transgender people in the U.S. The latest executive order applies to people under 19, categorizing 18-year-olds with children. What's next: Trump directed the Department of Health and Human Service to publish a review of existing literature on best practices for promoting the health of children with gender dysphoria within 90 days. The department was also directed to regulate programs like Medicare or Medicaid, the Affordable Care Act, essential health benefit requirements and federally funded manuals of diseases and disorders. The head of each executive department or agency that provides research or education grants was ordered to take steps to ensure that institutions receiving funding end gender-affirming care. The order also calls for removing federal funding from medical schools and hospitals that research gender-affirming care. Catch up quick: On Inauguration Day, Trump signed an executive order that the federal government would only recognize two sexes, male and female. He's since called on the Pentagon to formulate a new policy that would target transgender service members. What they're saying: Chase Strangio, Co-Director of the ACLU's LGBT & HIV Project, said in a statement: "Today's order lays out a clear plan to shut down access to life-saving medical care for transgender youth nationwide, overriding the role of families and putting politics between patients and their doctors." "We will not allow this dangerous, sweeping, and unconstitutional order to stand," added Strangio, who defended access to gender-affirming care before the Supreme Court last year. Kelley Robinson, president of the Human Rights Campaign, said in a statement: "It is deeply unfair to play politics with people's lives and strip transgender young people, their families, and their providers of the freedom to make necessary health care decisions." LGBTQ media advocacy group GLAAD in a statement called the rhetoric in Trump's executive orders "appallingly inaccurate and incoherent" and "already ruled unconstitutional by one judge last week." It added the language was "increasingly extreme in defaming transgender people and spreading graphic disinformation about health care that is supported by every major medical association." Reality check: Gender-affirming care is supported by major medical organizations including the American Medical Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Psychiatric Association, which all concur that gender-affirming care is lifesaving medical care. Drugs like puberty blockers are temporary and reversible and used for both trans and non-trans youth who experience early onset puberty. Between the lines: Fewer than 0.1% of adolescents received drugs for gender-affirming care between 2018 and 2022, per a study led by Harvard University researchers published this month. No patient under 12 years old who were transgender or gender diverse received hormones, the study found. Zoom out: The Supreme Court, meanwhile, seems likely to uphold a ban on gender-affirming care for transgender youth following oral arguments last month. Since the first legislative ban on youth gender-affirming care was passed in 2021, such legislation has taken effect in 26 states, per the Human Rights Campaign. Go deeper: Trump's road map for defunding gender-affirming care Editor's note: This story has been updated with reactions from the ACLU, GLAAD and Human Rights Campaign.
USA Today
30-01-2025
- Health
- USA Today
RFK Jr., Patel and Gabbard: Trump nominees face high-stakes day at confirmation hearings
RFK Jr., Patel and Gabbard: Trump nominees face high-stakes day at confirmation hearings Show Caption Hide Caption RFK Jr.'s words used against him during contentious hearing Robert F. Kennedy Jr. faced intense scrutiny about previous statements at his first confirmation hearing for DHHS secretary. WASHINGTON ― Three of President Donald Trump's most polarizing secretary nominees ‒ Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Tulsi Gabbard and Kash Patel ‒ face a grilling from lawmakers during a pivotal day of Senate confirmation hearings Thursday. For Kennedy, Trump's nominee to lead the Department of Health and Human Service, it will mark his second day of hearings after he had a rocky debut Wednesday before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions. While several Trump secretary nominees have sailed to confirmation with relative ease ‒ outside of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who needed Vice President JD Vance to break a tie in the Senate ‒ the fate of Kennedy, Gabbard and Patel remains unclear. Kennedy and Gabbard, in particular, may be on wobbly ground. Kennedy's hearing is set to begin at 10 a.m. ET. Patel, Kennedy's nominee to lead the Federal Bureau of Investigation, goes before the Senate Judiciary Committee at 9:30 a.m. ET. Gabbard, Trump's pick for director of national intelligence, will face the Senate Intelligence Committee at 10 a.m. ET. Follow along for live updates: Kennedy, Trump's pick to be the nation's top health official, struggled to answer questions about Medicare and Medicaid during a shaky hearing Wednesday. He also didn't have sound explanations for past statements casting doubt about vaccines, comparing the CDC's work to "Nazi death camps," saying it "highly likely" Lyme disease was a military bioweapon and concerns about antidepressants. More: 'You frighten people': 4 takeaways from RFK Jr's contentious confirmation hearing Kennedy tried to distance himself from the past remarks, highlighted repeatedly by Democrats, telling the committee, "I am not anti-vaccine. I am pro-safety." ‒ Joey Garrison
