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Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Health
- Yahoo
RFK Jr scraps vaccine committee members in effort to restore 'public trust'
The Department of Health and Human Services dismissed all the members of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) on Monday. The committee's job was to decide and "make recommendations" related to the necessity and use of vaccines, according to an HHS news release. All the current members of the committee were brought in under the Biden administration, and 13 of them were put on the committee last year. HHS said it would take until 2028 for most of the members to be replaced if they served their full term. Rfk Jr's Hhs To End Routine Covid Vaccine Guidance For Children, Pregnant Women: Report Public debate about vaccines, especially whether government or workplaces should mandate them, escalated during the COVID-19 pandemic. Much of the criticism and skepticism fell on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which ACIP advises. "Today we are prioritizing the restoration of public trust above any specific pro- or anti-vaccine agenda," Secretary Robert F. Kennedy said in a statement on Monday. "The public must know that unbiased science—evaluated through a transparent process and insulated from conflicts of interest—guides the recommendations of our health agencies." Read On The Fox News App The HHS release noted that the next meeting for the committee will be June 25-27 in Atlanta, and the committee will have new people that are "currently under consideration." Cdc Eyes Narrower Covid-19 Vaccine Guidance Ahead Of 2025-2026 Season "A clean sweep is necessary to reestablish public confidence in vaccine science," Kennedy continued. "ACIP's new members will prioritize public health and evidence-based medicine. The Committee will no longer function as a rubber stamp for industry profit-taking agendas. The entire world once looked to American health regulators for guidance, inspiration, scientific impartiality, and unimpeachable integrity. Public trust has eroded. Only through radical transparency and gold standard science, will we earn it back." HHS cited an executive order from President Donald Trump saying that changes were needed in how the federal government plays a role in science and health. "Unfortunately, the Federal Government has contributed to this loss of trust. In several notable cases, executive departments and agencies (agencies) have used or promoted scientific information in a highly misleading manner," the order stated. Millions Spent By Biden On Covid 'Vaccine Hesitancy' Campaign Slashed By Trump Nih: Report "For example, under the prior Administration, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued COVID-19 guidance on reopening schools that incorporated edits by the American Federation of Teachers and was understood to discourage in-person learning," the order, signed on May 23, continued. "This guidance's restrictive and burdensome reopening conditions led many schools to remain at least partially closed, resulting in substantial negative effects on educational outcomes — even though the best available scientific evidence showed that children were unlikely to transmit or suffer serious illness or death from the virus, and that opening schools with reasonable mitigation measures would have only minor effects on transmission," it added. Kennedy was confirmed by the Senate to lead the department in February after Trump nominated article source: RFK Jr scraps vaccine committee members in effort to restore 'public trust'
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Trump FDA overhauls COVID-19 vaccine approval to focus on older populations, high-risk individuals
The Food and Drug Administration is shifting its annual COVID-19 vaccine approval policies to focus on Americans older than age 65 and other "high-risk" individuals, while increasing the standard of evidence to approve COVID vaccines for low-risk individuals. "The FDA will approve vaccines for high-risk persons and, at the same time, demand robust, gold-standard data on persons at low risk," FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research chief, Vinay Prasad, and FDA Commissioner Martin Makary, wrote in the New England Journal of Medicine Tuesday. "These clinical trials will inform future directions for the FDA, but more important, they will provide information that is desperately craved by health care providers and the American people." Americans over the age of 65 and those considered at high-risk of contracting the virus will be able to receive an annual COVID-19 vaccine this fall, the essay outlined, while vaccines for low-risk Americans will likely face stricter scientific analysis before they are made available to the public. The FDA estimated that about "100 million to 200 million Americans" older than age 65 or considered at high-risk will still have access to vaccines. Prasad and Makary said in their essay that the U.S. will move away from a "one-size-fits-all" paradigm that promoted COVID-19 vaccines for the vast majority of Americans, stretching from children to the elderly. The shift, they said, will bring America's policies more in line with guidelines in European nations. Rfk Jr's Hhs To End Routine Covid Vaccine Guidance For Children, Pregnant Women: Report "While all other high-income nations confine vaccine recommendations to older adults (typically those older than 65 years of age), or those at high risk for severe Covid-19, the United States has adopted a one-size-fits-all regulatory framework and has granted broad marketing authorization to all Americans over the age of 6 months," the health leaders wrote in the New England Journal. Read On The Fox News App "The U.S. policy has sometimes been justified by arguing that the American people are not sophisticated enough to understand age- and risk-based recommendations," they wrote. "We reject this view." Fiery Rfk Jr. Flogs Who For Caving To China On Covid, Celebrating Pandemic 'Failures' In Stunning Video To Org The FDA's policy shift will include requiring vaccine manufacturers to gather clinical trial data to justify rolling out new COVID-19 vaccines for Americans at low risk of contracting the virus. BEN & JERRY'S CO-FOUNDER ARRESTED PROTESTING SENATE HEARING: 'RFK KILLS PEOPLE WITH HATE' Prasad and Makary held a roundtable discussion on the framework outlined in their medical essay Tuesday afternoon to walk Americans through the policy shift. Prasad explained that health officials under the Trump administration are taking into account that Americans have balked at the FDA's guidance under the Biden administration to receive multiple booster shots, while other Americans demand access to the vaccines. "We have to admit to ourselves that America is deeply divided on the policy issue of repeat COVID 19 vaccine doses or boosters," he said. "There are some Americans out there who are worried that the FDA has not fully documented and interrogated the safety harms of these products, and they are categorically opposed to these products. There are also some Americans we also have to recognize, who are desperate for additional protection, and they demand these products. But the truth is that most doctors and most of the public are entirely uncertain, and that is reflected in low vaccine uptake of these products." The pair added during the roundtable that Americans' trust in the scientific community has cratered since the pandemic. "Survey after survey shows trust in institutions like the FDA and scientists in general, it's rock bottom," Prasad said during the roundtable. "I mean, we have lower trust than Congress, and that's saying something, you know. And we need to rebuild that trust. And part of rebuilding that trust is having conversations like this, writing articles like we've done in the New England Journal, and having a common-sense evidence-based framework for rebuilding that trust." The pair cited in their article in the New England Journal that "public trust in vaccination in general has declined," including for "vital immunization programs such as that for measles–mumps–rubella (MMR) vaccination, which has been clearly established as safe and highly effective."Original article source: Trump FDA overhauls COVID-19 vaccine approval to focus on older populations, high-risk individuals
Yahoo
26-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
RFK Jr. urges Americans to dispose of medicine safely — and to not flush them
Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is urging Americans to dispose of their prescription medications properly. He addressed the issue in a video posted on X, marking National Prescription Drug Take Back Day, which is April 26. The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has set up free, anonymous drop-off sites across the country where Americans can leave their unused prescription medications. Rfk Jr Vows To Make Sure Kids Get 'Real Food,' Not 'Poison' After Artificial Food Dye Announcement While some may think that flushing prescriptions down the toilet is a safe alternative to throwing them away and can prevent people from accidentally ingesting it, Kennedy warns that there are dangers to that too. The HHS chief explained that once flushed, the medications will go into the water system, potentially exposing anyone who drinks the water to those substances. "We don't fully know the effects of low levels of birth control hormones or antibiotics or chemotherapy agents and so on, in the water, but it's not good," Kennedy said in the video. Rfk Jr Talks Kennedy History On First Trip As Hhs Chief, Inspires Gov To Order 'Mountaineer Mile' For 'Maha' Read On The Fox News App However, there are some medications that are safe to flush. According to the FDA's "Flush List," there are several opioid medications that are safe to flush, including Vicodin, OxyContin and Percocet. However, the FDA warns that drugs that do not appear on its Flush List should not be flushed down the toilet. The DEA sees National Prescription Drug Take Back Day as more than a way for Americans to clear out unwanted or unused medication. On its website advertising the take back day, the DEA frames it as a way to prevent "medication misuse and opioid addiction from ever starting." During its most recent take back day in October 2024, the DEA collected 629,953 pounds, or 314 tons, of medication across 4,644 collection sites. For those who miss National Prescription Drug Take Back Day, there are drug take-back sites open year-round. The FDA provides instructions on how to safely dispose of medications, as well as needles and syringes article source: RFK Jr. urges Americans to dispose of medicine safely — and to not flush them
Yahoo
12-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Kennedy tells FDA employees that 'the Deep State is real': report
Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. visited employees at the FDA on Friday and reportedly told them that "the Deep State is real." The visit was his first appearance with FDA Commissioner Marty Makary and was reportedly meant to welcome the new chief. "President Trump always talks about the Deep State, and the media, you know, disparages him and says that he's paranoid," Kennedy said according to Politico, which reported it obtained an audio recording and transcript of the secretary's remarks. "But the Deep State is real. And it's not, you know, just George Soros and Bill Gates and a bunch of nefarious individuals sitting together in a room and plotting the, you know, the destruction of humanity." According to multiple reports, Kennedy pointed the finger at "institutional pressures." Rfk Jr. Plans To Direct Cdc To Stop Recommending Fluoride In Water Kennedy also reportedly said the FDA had become a "sock puppet" of the industries it was meant to regulate. NBC News reported that Kennedy said that this was the case with "every agency," not just the FDA. One area where Kennedy said he has seen this within the FDA is its Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) system, which he says acts as a "loophole" for food companies. In March, Kennedy directed the FDA to reevaluate its policies on food companies obtaining approval before adding new ingredients to their products. He believes that "eliminating this loophole" will not only provide consumers with more transparency, but will be key in improving Americans' health. Read On The Fox News App 'Healthy Snack Time' With Elementary School Students Launched By Secretaries Rollins, Rfk Jr. The HHS secretary has not hidden his disdain for the FDA, especially as he spoke throughout the 2024 election cycle about what changes he believes are crucial to improving Americans' health. About a week and a half before the election, Kennedy — who had already endorsed now-President Donald Trump — issued clear warnings on social media to those who "work for the FDA and are part of this corrupt system." He told them to preserve their records and to "pack your bags." Click Here To Sign Up For Our Lifestyle Newsletter Kennedy recently embarked on a MAHA (Make America Healthy Again) tour in which he visited Utah, Arizona and New Mexico. According to HHS, Kennedy was set to speak on state laws banning ultra-processed foods and food dyes from school lunches, among other regulations. Fox News Digital reached out to HHS for comment on the reports outside working hours but did not receive a response for article source: Kennedy tells FDA employees that 'the Deep State is real': report
Yahoo
02-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Dem AGs take Trump-Kennedy HHS to court over cuts to COVID-era grants
More than 20 Democratic attorneys general are joining forces to take Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to court to halt spending cuts he has authorized within the Health and Human Services (HHS) Department in alignment with President Donald Trump's goal of cutting waste and downsizing the federal government. "I cannot overstate how reckless and illegal these cuts are," Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes said in a statement Tuesday. The cuts, which were announced last week and began Tuesday, include firing some 10,000 federal health employees across its major agencies – roughly 20% of its workforce – as well as slashing billions of dollars in public health grants. Hhs Downsizing Begins Amid Rfk Jr. 'Make America Healthy Again' Push: 'Win-win For Taxpayers' Those public health grants, amounting to $12 billion, were earmarked for states during the COVID-19 pandemic for testing and vaccinations. The HHS justified the cuts because the "COVID-19 pandemic is over, and HHS will no longer waste billions of taxpayer dollars responding to a non-existent pandemic that Americans moved on from years ago." HHS Director of Communications Andrew Nixon said in a media statement last week that "HHS is prioritizing funding projects that will deliver on President Trump's mandate to address our chronic disease epidemic and Make America Healthy Again." Read On The Fox News App However, Mayes, alongside 23 other Democratic state attorneys general, argue the cuts will impact the health of their states. "By slashing these grants, the Trump administration has launched an all-out attack on Arizona's public health system—harming the entire state, but hitting rural communities the hardest. These cuts target the very places that rely most on this critical funding," Mayes said. "Eliminating it would devastate our already precarious system and cost jobs across Arizona, from doctors to tribal health workers. I will fight this every step of the way." Rfk Jr Backs Wv Push For Snap Waivers, Work Mandates Under 'Maha' The lawsuit, filed in Rhode Island, claims the "unlawful withholding of funds has already caused substantial confusion and will result in immediate and devastating harm" to the residents of 23 states and the District of Columbia. Attorneys general from Rhode Island, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Washington, Wisconsin and Washington, D.C., are listed as plaintiffs. The department has been preparing to make major cuts in recent weeks across its health agencies, especially pertaining to administrative costs and DEI-related spending. Hospitals Warned They Must Protect Children From Chemical And Surgical Mutilation: Hhs Agency Memo On Tuesday, federal health employees began receiving notices of termination. The Associated Press also reported there were lines wrapped around the HHS building of employees trying to find out whether they still had a job. According to the HHS, the layoffs "will save taxpayers $1.8 billion per year" and "streamline" functions of the department while ensuring that essential services like Medicare and Medicaid continue without disruption. "We aren't just reducing bureaucratic sprawl. We are realigning the organization with its core mission and our new priorities in reversing the chronic disease epidemic," the HHS secretary said in a statement. "This Department will do more – a lot more – at a lower cost to the taxpayer."Original article source: Dem AGs take Trump-Kennedy HHS to court over cuts to COVID-era grants
