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Yahoo
an hour ago
- Business
- Yahoo
HHS slams 'under-tested' mRNA technology as Trump cuts Moderna's vaccine funding
President Donald Trump's Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is terminating awards totaling more than $750 million dollars that were provided to pharmaceutical manufacturer Moderna to help facilitate its production of mRNA-based bird flu vaccines. During President Joe Biden's final week in office, his administration awarded $590 million to Moderna to help speed up its production of mRNA-based vaccines. The $590 million award followed a separate $176 million award Biden gave to Moderna earlier last year for mRNA vaccine technology. Messenger RNA vaccines are a newer type of vaccine technology, which was utilized by companies like Moderna and Pfizer to develop their COVID-19 vaccines. The vaccine technology was at the center of a lot of criticism amid the coronavirus pandemic for potentially being associated with adverse side effects in some people who took them, such as myocarditis. Military Spouse And Mom Of 5 Fights Back As Vaccine Dispute Blocks Family's Permanent Change Of Station Trump administration officials previously hinted at the potential that this funding could be terminated, citing a lack of oversight during the Biden administration pertaining to vaccine production. "After a rigorous review, we concluded that continued investment in Moderna's H5N1 mRNA vaccine was not scientifically or ethically justifiable," HHS Communications Director Andrew Nixon said. "This is not simply about efficacy — it's about safety, integrity, and trust. 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." Read On The Fox News App Trump Fda Overhauls Covid-19 Vaccine Approval To Focus On Older Populations, High-risk Individuals The announcement reflects a larger shift in federal vaccine priorities, after HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced earlier this week that COVID-19 vaccines would be removed from the federal government's list of recommended vaccines for children and pregnant women. Meanwhile, a report from Senate Republicans released earlier this month suggested the Biden administration withheld critical safety data and downplayed known risks tied to the mRNA COVID-19 vaccine. In particular, the Senate report focuses on HHS' awareness of, and response to, cases of myocarditis — a type of heart inflammation — following COVID-19 vaccination. "Rather than provide the public and health care providers with immediate and transparent information regarding the risk of myocarditis following mRNA COVID-19 vaccination, the Biden administration waited until late June 2021 to announce changes to the labels for the Moderna and Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines based on the 'suggested increased risks' of myocarditis and pericarditis," the Senate report states. "Even though CDC and FDA officials were well aware of the risk of myocarditis following COVID-19 vaccination, the Biden administration opted to withhold issuing a formal warning to the public for months about the safety concerns, jeopardizing the health of young Americans." In response to the Trump administration's funding termination, Moderna put out a press release acknowledging the move, but also touting the "safety profile" observed amid its work on a new mRNA bird flu vaccine. "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," said Stéphane Bancel, Chief Executive Officer of Moderna. "These clinical data in pandemic influenza underscore the critical role mRNA technology has played as a countermeasure to emerging health threats."Original article source: HHS slams 'under-tested' mRNA technology as Trump cuts Moderna's vaccine funding
Time of India
an hour ago
- Health
- Time of India
Trump administration cuts $766 million in funding to Moderna for bird flu, pandemic vaccine projects
(Representative image AP) The Trump administration has slashed $766 million allocated in funding to Moderna Inc., an American biotech and pharmaceutical company responsible for developing vaccines. Moderna was tasked to make vaccines against potential pandemic influenza viruses, as well as the H5N1 bird flu. The Health and Human Services Department had notified the company on Monday about the withdrawal of funds that were awarded through the BARDA (Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority) program. HHS is withdrawing funds awarded in January and July this year, intended to finance the development and purchase of the company's investigational vaccine. Moderna had received $590 million in January and $176 million in July in funding meant to help judge the efficacy of the vaccines for bird flu and other pandemic viruses, as said by a company Spokesperson. Health secretary Robert F. Kennedy has expressed his concerns regarding the company's vaccines despite evidence that vaccines developed by Moderna are safe and have saved millions of lives before. 'While the termination of funding from HHS adds uncertainty, we are pleased by the robust immune response and safety profile observed in this interim analysis," said the company in a statement as reported by AP. Using the same technology used to develop and roll out vaccines during the Covid-19 pandemic, Moderna has developed a new vaccine called mRNA-1018. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Ida y vuelta a España desde 589$ Plus Ultra Compra ahora Undo On the other hand, a new, highly contagious variant of Covid-19 has surfaced in the US known as NB. 1.81. Initially detected in late March and early April among international travelers, cases have since been identified in New York, Ohio, California, Rhode Island, Hawaii, Washington State, and Virginia. Last year, the H5N1 bird flu virus spilled from wild birds into cattle and ended up infecting hundreds of animals across several states. 70 people reported sick with the flu, and one person died. Scientists have warned that continued alteration or evolution in the virus can make it more potent and ultimately lead to a pandemic.
Axios
3 hours ago
- Health
- Axios
HHS cancels Moderna's $590M bird flu vaccine award
The Trump administration canceled a nearly $600 million award to Moderna to develop an mRNA vaccine for bird flu in humans, the company announced Wednesda y. Why it matters: It ends one of the remaining Biden-era efforts aimed at creating vaccines for pandemic preparedness. But the company said it would explore alternatives for further developing and manufacturing the shot. Driving the news: Moderna reported positive early stage data on the mRNA vaccine, saying clinical testing in roughly 300 adults was found to be generally well-tolerated. Participants achieved 98% immunity within three weeks of the second dose of the vaccine, the company said. "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." Details: The funds awarded in January from the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority were aimed at creating a line of defense against H5N1 in peoplethat matches the strains circulating in cows and birds.
Toronto Star
3 hours ago
- Business
- Toronto Star
Trump administration cancels $766 million Moderna contract to fight pandemic flu
The Trump administration has canceled $766 million awarded to drugmaker Moderna Inc. to develop a vaccine against potential pandemic influenza viruses, including the H5N1 bird flu. The company said it was notified Wednesday that the Health and Human Services Department had withdrawn funds awarded in July 2024 and in January to pay for development and purchase of its investigational vaccine.
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Health
- Yahoo
HHS cancels $590 million contract with Moderna for bird flu vaccine
The US Department of Health and Human Services is terminating a contract with drugmaker Moderna to develop a vaccine to protect against bird flu amid the agency's broader efforts to reevaluate therapies that use mRNA technology. The contract, which was worth $590 million, was announced in mid-January, just before President Donald Trump's second term. Moderna said Wednesday that an early-phase trial of its mRNA-based vaccine against H5 bird flu in about 300 healthy adults showed 'a rapid, potent and durable immune response.' 'While the termination of funding from HHS adds uncertainty, we are pleased by the robust immune response and safety profile … and we will explore alternative paths forward for the program,' Moderna CEO Stephane 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.' However, HHS said Wednesday that the project doesn't meet scientific or safety expectations for continued investment. 'After a rigorous review, we concluded that continued investment in Moderna's H5N1 mRNA vaccine was not scientifically or ethically justifiable,' HHS Communications Director Andrew Nixon said in a statement. '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.' The Trump administration has been looking to evaluate mRNA research and technology and ensure transparency, an administration official told CNN last month. MRNA technology is already used in Moderna's and Pfizer/BioNTech's currently licensed Covid-19 vaccines, which have been found to be safe and effective. But public health experts have expressed concern that increasing anti-vaccine sentiments in general – and anti-mRNA sentiments specifically – may block people from accessing vaccines. 'The attack on mRNA vaccines is beyond absurd,' Dr. Ashish Jha, dean of the Brown University School of Public Health and the White House Covid-19 response coordinator in the Biden administration, said Wednesday on social media. 'It was President Trump's Operation Warp Speed that gave us mRNA vaccines. These vaccines have been administered nearly 2 billion times to hundreds of millions of people around the world – making it one of the most widely used and widely studied vaccines in human history. They are safe and work well. 'If Bird Flu starts spreading from people to people, we will come to regret this as the day we decided to put the lives of the American people at grave risk.' Avian influenza, or bird flu, is a broad term that refers to several types of influenza that normally infect birds. The H5N1 virus has raised concern among health officials because it has sickened dozens of people in the United States and killed one. The US does have vaccines against H5 viruses in its Strategic National Stockpile, but they are made with older technology. In February, Bloomberg News reported that US health officials were reevaluating the Moderna contract. 'I'm very disappointed, candidly,' Dr. Paul Friedrichs, a physician and retired Air Force major general who was director of the White House Office of Pandemic Preparedness and Response Policy in the Biden administration, told CNN in March. 'One of the real challenges when a new pathogen emerges is that it takes time to produce therapeutics, and it takes time to produce vaccines. 'So we worked very closely with industry to try and find ways to fund research and clinical trials and make sure that we had a variety of options available if this virus became more dangerous,' he said. 'Because we just don't know what's going to happen next with this virus.' CNN's Deidre McPhillips, Brenda Goodman and Jacqueline Howard contributed to this report.
