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The Journal
5 days ago
- Health
- The Journal
US Health Secretary RFK Jr halts funding for vaccines to fight Covid-19 and flu
THE US DEPARTMENT of Health and Human Services is to cancel contracts and pull funding for some vaccines that are being developed to fight respiratory viruses like Covid-19 and the flu. Robert F Kennedy Jr announced that 22 projects, totalling $500m (€432m), to develop vaccines using mRNA technology will be halted. This is despite infectious disease experts deeming the vaccines safe and effective. 'We're shifting that funding toward safer, broader vaccine platforms that remain effective even as viruses mutate,' Kennedy said in a statement. 'Let me be absolutely clear: HHS supports safe, effective vaccines for every American who wants them. 'That's why we're moving beyond the limitations of mRNA and investing in better solutions.' Kennedy's decision to terminate the projects is the latest in a string of decisions that have put the long-time vaccine critic's doubts about jabs into full effect at the nation's health department. Since taking office, Kennedy, who spent two decades sowing misinformation around immunisation, has overseen a major overhaul of US health policy – firing, for example, a panel of vaccine experts that advise the government and replacing them with his own appointees. In its first meeting, the new panel promptly voted to ban a longstanding vaccine preservative targeted by the anti-vaccine movement, despite its strong safety record. He has also ordered a sweeping new study on the long-debunked link between vaccines and autism. Last month, he told a meeting of the Vaccine Alliance Gavi that the US would be pulling funding from the organisation indefinitely until the global health organisation has 're-earned the public trust'. Though in development for decades, mRNA vaccines were propelled from lab benches to widespread use through US President Donald Trump's Operation Warp Speed – a public-private partnership led by BARDA that poured billions into companies to accelerate development. The technology's pioneers, Katalin Kariko and Drew Weissman, were awarded the 2023 Nobel Prize in Medicine for their work contributing 'to the unprecedented rate of vaccine development during one of the greatest threats to human health in modern times. RFK criticised mRNA vaccines in a video on his social media accounts, explaining the decision to cancel projects being led by the nation's leading pharmaceutical companies, including Pfizer and Moderna, that offer protection against viruses like the flu, Covid-19 and H5N1. Advertisement 'To replace the troubled mRNA programs, we're prioritising the development of safer, broader vaccine strategies, like whole-virus vaccines and novel platforms that don't collapse when viruses mutate,' Kennedy said in the video. 'Dangerous decision' Infectious disease experts say the mRNA technology used in vaccines is safe, and they credit its development during the first Trump administration with slowing the 2020 coronavirus pandemic. Future pandemics will be harder to stop without the help of mRNA. 'I don't think I've seen a more dangerous decision in public health in my 50 years in the business,' said Mike Osterholm, a University of Minnesota expert on infectious diseases and pandemic preparations. He noted mRNA technology offers potential advantages of rapid production, crucial in the event of a new pandemic that requires a new vaccine. The shelving of the mRNA projects is short-sighted as concerns about a bird flu pandemic continue to loom, said Dr Paul Offit, a vaccine expert at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. 'It's certainly saved millions of lives,' Offit said of the existing mRNA vaccines. Scientists are using mRNA for more than infectious disease vaccines, with researchers around the world exploring its use for cancer immunotherapies. At the White House earlier this year, billionaire tech entrepreneur Larry Ellison praised mRNA for its potential to treat cancer. Traditionally, vaccines have required growing pieces of viruses, often in chicken eggs or giant vats of cells, then purifying that material. The mRNA approach starts with a snippet of genetic code that carries instructions for making proteins. Scientists pick the protein to target, inject that blueprint and the body makes just enough to trigger immune protection — producing its own vaccine dose. In a statement yesterday, the health department said 'other uses of mRNA technology within the department are not impacted by this announcement'. The mRNA technology is used in approved Covid-19 and RSV jabs, but has not yet been approved for a flu jab. Moderna, which was studying a combination Covid-19 and flu mRNA vaccines, had said it believed mRNA could speed up production of flu jabs compared with traditional vaccines. The abandoned mRNA projects signal a 'shift in vaccine development priorities', the health department said in its statement, adding that it will start 'investing in better solutions'. Additional reporting by AFP
RTÉ News
5 days ago
- Health
- RTÉ News
US halt $500m in mRNA vaccine research, RFK says
US President Donald Trump's administration has announced it would terminate 22 federal contracts for mRNA-based vaccines, questioning the safety of a technology credited with helping end the Covid pandemic and saving millions of lives. The announcement was made by Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr. "We reviewed the science, listened to the experts, and acted," Kennedy said in a statement. The health department's Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) is "terminating 22 mRNA vaccine development investments because the data show these vaccines fail to protect effectively against upper respiratory infections like COVID and flu," he added. "We're shifting that funding toward safer, broader vaccine platforms that remain effective even as viruses mutate." The changes affect Moderna's mRNA bird flu vaccine - a move the company itself disclosed in May - as well as numerous other programmes, including "rejection or cancellation of multiple pre-award solicitations" from pharmaceutical giants Pfizer and Sanofi. In total, the affected projects are worth "nearly $500 million," the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) said. Certain late-stage projects were excluded from the move "to preserve prior taxpayer investment." "Let me be absolutely clear: HHS supports safe, effective vaccines for every American who wants them," Mr Kennedy said. "That's why we're moving beyond the limitations of mRNA and investing in better solutions." Mr Kennedy has long questioned the safety of vaccines, contrary to scientific evidence, and he has also suggested a link between vaccines and autism. Since taking office as Secretary of Health and Human Services, Mr Kennedy has overseen a major overhaul of US health policy - firing, for example, a panel of vaccine experts that advise the government and replacing them with his own appointees. In its first meeting, the new panel promptly voted to ban a longstanding vaccine preservative targeted by the anti-vaccine movement, despite its strong safety record. Unlike traditional vaccines, which often use weakened or inactivated forms of the target virus or bacteria, mRNA shots deliver genetic instructions into the host's cells, prompting them to produce a harmless decoy of the pathogen and train the immune system to fight the real thing. Though in development for decades, mRNA vaccines were propelled from lab benches to widespread use through President Trump's Operation Warp Speed - a public-private partnership led by BARDA that poured billions into companies to accelerate development. The technology's pioneers, Katalin Kariko and Drew Weissman, were awarded the 2023 Nobel Prize in Medicine for their work contributing "to the unprecedented rate of vaccine development during one of the greatest threats to human health in modern times." Late last month, federal data showed that vaccination rates for several diseases, including measles, diphtheria and polio decreased among US pre-schoolers in the 2024-25 school year from the year before. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released the new figures at a time when the US faces a growing measles outbreak, with confirmed cases this month reaching the highest level since the disease was declared eliminated from the country in 2000. The CDC data show vaccination rates have steadily trended down since the Covid-19 pandemic. For the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine, coverage went from 95.2% in the 2019-2020 school year to 92.7% last year, before landing at 92.5% in 2024-2025. In Texas, the epicentre of the recent measles outbreak, MMR coverage has fallen to 93.2% from 96.9% in 2019. Most people are protected from measles through herd immunity when more than 95% of people in the community are vaccinated, the CDC website says. An HHS spokesperson said the data released on 31 July showed a "majority" of children continue to get routine childhood immunisations, and that vaccination remains the most effective way to protect children from measles and whooping cough. "The decision to vaccinate is a personal one," the spokesperson said. "Parents should consult their health care providers on options for their families." In addition, exemptions from one or more vaccines increased to 3.6% in 2024-2025 from 3.3% the year before, the CDC website said. Exemptions, which can be granted on medical or religious grounds, increased in 36 states and DC, with 17 states reporting exemptions exceeding 5%, it said.
