Latest news with #RobertFKennedyJr
Bloomberg
16 minutes ago
- General
- Bloomberg
CDC Shifts Child Covid Vaccination Guidance After RFK Jr. Post
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention updated its childhood vaccination schedule to say that healthy children 'may receive' Covid shots — softened from its previous stance calling for them — after Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said it would no longer be recommended. When a parent wants 'their child to be vaccinated, children 6 months and older may receive Covid-19 vaccination, informed by the clinical judgment of a health-care provider,' the CDC website now says. It had previously recommended that everyone aged six months and older get vaccinated.
Medscape
35 minutes ago
- General
- Medscape
Should You Still Recommend COVID-19 Vaccines?
The Trump administration announced today that the CDC will no longer recommend COVID-19 vaccines for many children and pregnant people. No details were immediately published on the CDC website, but Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said in a video on X that the recommendation for "healthy children and healthy pregnant women has been removed from the CDC recommended immunization schedule." He cited lack of clinical data to support "a repeat booster strategy in children." Still, that may not affect the advice clinicians give their patients. Should Pregnant People Get the COVID Shot? Kennedy's announcement did not explain why the recommendation for pregnant women changed. Previously, the CDC advised pregnant people to get COVID vaccines every 6 months – just like others at high risk of severe illness. There have been about 70 studies of COVID vaccination in pregnant people, and the evidence shows the shots are safe and provide important protection to both mother and baby during pregnancy and after birth, according to Kevin Ault, MD, a practicing OB/GYN and former CDC COVID vaccine adviser. "I'm disappointed because there's no new data to support the change that I'm aware of, and if there is data, it should be discussed publicly," said Ault, a professor at the Western Michigan University Homer Stryker M.D. School of Medicine in Kalamazoo. He said he will continue to advise his pregnant patients to get vaccinated. During an interview with WebMD, he became notably emotional and said he worried for his patients on Medicaid if the program stops covering vaccination. Ault was a member of the CDC expert panel that initially crafted the nation's COVID vaccine recommendations. "Most obstetricians in their lifetimes have had a bad experience with flu and now COVID," he said. "We don't want sick people in the ICU who are pregnant. And the best way to avoid that is having those vaccines that prevent severe maternal complications." The recommendation for pregnant women is also at odds with a plan put forward by federal officials last week in The New England Journal of Medicine, which listed pregnancy among the conditions for which COVID vaccination would be recommended. "As ob-gyns who treat patients every day, we have seen firsthand how dangerous COVID-19 infection can be during pregnancy and for newborns who depend on maternal antibodies from the vaccine for protection," Steven J. Fleischman, MD, president of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, said in a statement. "We also understand that despite the change in recommendations from HHS, the science has not changed. It is very clear that COVID infection during pregnancy can be catastrophic and lead to major disability, and it can cause devastating consequences for families. The COVID vaccine is safe during pregnancy, and vaccination can protect our patients and their infants." When a pregnant person gets vaccinated, antibodies travel through the placenta and are passed to the fetus, protecting the newborn during the first critical months of life. That's important because babies from newborn to 6 months old (who are not yet eligible for vaccination) are among those most often hospitalized for severe COVID. COVID vaccination during pregnancy cuts hospitalization risk by 52%. What About Children? Public health experts continue to emphasize that COVID-19 vaccines offer significant benefits for children. While severe illness is less common in kids than in adults, COVID-19 can still cause serious outcomes. About 1% of U.S. children – equivalent to roughly 1 million – have had long COVID, according to CDC data. Research also shows that vaccination may reduce the risk of long COVID in children. Decisions about vaccinating healthy children have often been complex, in part because their risk of severe illness is lower than that of adults, making it harder to show clear benefits in large clinical trials. The relatively low uptake of pediatric COVID vaccines also means there's less real-world data compared to data for adults, which can complicate public messaging and policy. Experts say the decision often comes down to individual risk. For children with health conditions, vaccination is more strongly recommended due to a higher risk of complications. But for otherwise healthy kids – especially those who've already had COVID – the benefits can appear less clear-cut, even if vaccination remains safe and reasonable. Pediatric infectious disease expert Sean O'Leary, MD, MPH, said in a statement that research has demonstrated that children, babies, and pregnant people are "at higher risk of hospitalization from COVID, and the safety of the COVID vaccine has been widely demonstrated." Previously, the recommendation was for COVID vaccines to begin when a child turns 6 months old. "By removing the recommendation, the decision could strip families of choice. Those who want to vaccinate may no longer be able to, as the implications for insurance coverage remain unclear," said O'Leary, on behalf of the American Academy of Pediatrics. "It's also unclear whether health care workers would be eligible to be vaccinated." Just 13% of children ages 6 months old to 17 years old are up to date with COVID vaccination, and another 7% of parents said they definitely planned to get their child vaccinated. Just over 14% of pregnant women have received a COVID vaccine since the latest version came out last fall, according to CDC data.
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Health
- Daily Mail
RFK Jr. faces AI scandal after allegedly using ChatGPT for MAHA report
The stunning appearance of multiple citation errors in Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.'s 'Make America Healthy Again' report could be due to the sloppy use of Artificial Intelligence, according to experts and telltale indicators. The White House and the Health and Human Services Department were forced to respond Thursday to a bombshell report that identified multiple citations to academic articles buried within the report that did not actually exist. Some of the errors appeared to carry hallmarks of generative AI which users have found is designed to provide an authoritative sounding answer when producing copy as it scrapes the internet for content and information. Some references contain 'oaicite', which is indicative of the use of OpenAI , in their URLs. The citation errors were confirmed by human beings who either said they didn't write some of the studies listed, or that their work relating to the health issues at hand came in other formats and publications. Some said interpretations of their data were also incorrect. 'The paper cited is not a real paper that I or my colleagues were involved with,' epidemiologist Katherine Keyes told NOTUS , which exposed many of the lapses. The feds have since purged seven citations from the report, which Kennedy released with much fanfare days ago. Another academic whose work got cited, Mariana G. Figueiro, told the publication: 'The conclusions in the report are not accurate and the journal reference is incorrect. It was not published in Pediatrics. Also, the study was not done in children, but in college students.' Thirty-seven of the report's citations occur multiple times, according to the Washington Post . 'Frankly, that's shoddy work,' Oren Etzioni, an AI expert at the University of Washington told the paper. 'We deserve better.' At the White House Thursday, a reporter asked White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt directly if Kennedy and his team of cabinet members who compiled the report relied on AI. 'I can't speak to that. I would refer you to the Department of Health and Human Services. What I know is just what I told you,' she responded. 'We have complete confidence in Secretary Kennedy and his team at HHS,' she said, when asked about the reports that unearthed the fake references. 'I understand there was some formatting issues with the MAHA report that are being addressed and the report will be updated,' she said. 'But it does not negate the substance of the report, which, as you know, is one of the most transformative health reports that has ever been released by the federal government is and is backed on good science that has never been recognized by the federal government. RFK, Jr., who has already drawn controversy for sowing doubts about vaccines and other views, gushed about the report before its release, which came after his team had a single public meeting. 'The report is the product of a consensual process, and it represents a collaborative effort of all the agencies and the White House. And it represents a consensus that is probably the strongest and most radical consensus by a government agency in history about the state of America's health,' he said. 'MAHA's become hot,' President Trump said of RFK, Jr.'s 'Make America Healthy Again' push. Before its release some farm state Republican lawmakers had raised concerns that the MAHA report would go after pesticides and farm practices they consider critical for farm efficiency. The report calls to examine the 'over-utilization of medication' such as steroids and questions the childhood vaccine schedule. But the author identified with a study showing a jump in use of corticosteroids 'denied writing it,' according to NOTUS, and called the conclusion an 'overgeneralization' of his other findings. The number of errors mushroomed this week as more outsiders picked at the purported data. Psychiatry Professor Robert L. Findling didn't write the report attributed to him on 'Direct-to-consumer advertising of psychotropic medications for youth: A growing concern.' Teeing off on the revelations was Democratic Sen. Patty Murray of Washington. 'What do you know? Secretary released areport with made-up sources,' she said, attaching emojis for a brain and a worm. 'This fully discredits the MAHA Commission report. RFK Jr. is a deranged conspiracy theorist, so no one should be surprised by his lies, but we should still call them out,' she wrote.
CTV News
2 hours ago
- General
- CTV News
U.S. CDC removes language that says healthy kids should get COVID shots
A sign marks the entrance to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta, on Oct. 8, 2013. (AP Photo/David Goldman, File) NEW YORK — The United States' top public health agency posted new recommendations that say healthy children may get COVID-19 vaccinations, removing language that said kids should get the shots. The change comes days after U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced that COVID-19 vaccines will no longer be recommended for healthy children and pregnant women. But the updated guidance on the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's website does not appear to end recommendations for vaccination of pregnant women, a change that was heavily criticized by medical and public health experts. CDC and HHS officials did not immediately respond to questions about the new guidance. Kennedy announced the coming changes in a 58-second video posted on the social media site X on Tuesday. No one from the CDC was in the video, and CDC officials referred questions about the announcement to Kennedy and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. On Thursday, the CDC updated its website. The agency said that shots may be given to children ages six months to 17 years who do not have moderate or severe problems with their immune systems. Instead of recommending the shots, the CDC page now says parents may decide to get their children vaccinated in consultation with a doctor. That kind of recommendation, known as shared decision-making, still means health insurers must pay for the vaccinations, according to the CDC. However, experts say vaccination rates tend to be lower when health authorities use that language and doctors are less emphatic with patients about getting shots. Childhood vaccination rates for COVID-19 are already low — just 13 per cent of children and 23 per cent of adults have received the 2024-25 COVID-19 vaccine, according to CDC data. Talk of changing the recommendations has been brewing. As the COVID-19 pandemic has waned, experts have discussed the possibility of focusing vaccination efforts on people 65 and older — who are among those most as risk for death and hospitalization. A CDC advisory panel is set to meet in June to make recommendations about the fall shots. Among its options are suggesting shots for high-risk groups but still giving lower-risk people the choice to get vaccinated. A committee work group has endorsed the idea. But Kennedy, a leading anti-vaccine advocate before becoming health secretary, decided not to wait for the scientific panel's review. The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute's Science and Educational Media Group and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content. Mike Stobbe, The Associated Press
Associated Press
2 hours ago
- General
- Associated Press
CDC removes language that says healthy kids should get COVID shots
NEW YORK (AP) — The nation's top public health agency posted new recommendations that say healthy children may get COVID-19 vaccinations, removing language that said kids should get the shots. The change comes days after U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced that COVID-19 vaccines will no longer be recommended for healthy children and pregnant women. But the updated guidance on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's website does not appear to end recommendations for vaccination of pregnant women, a change that was heavily criticized by medical and public health experts. CDC and HHS officials did not immediately respond to questions about the new guidance. Kennedy announced the coming changes in a 58-second video posted on the social media site X on Tuesday. No one from the CDC was in the video, and CDC officials referred questions about the announcement to Kennedy and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. On Thursday, the CDC updated its website. The agency said that shots may be given to children ages 6 months to 17 years who do not have moderate or severe problems with their immune systems. Instead of recommending the shots, the CDC page now says parents may decide to get their children vaccinated in consultation with a doctor. That kind of recommendation, known as shared decision-making, still means health insurers must pay for the vaccinations, according to the CDC. However, experts say vaccination rates tend to be lower when health authorities use that language and doctors are less emphatic with patients about getting shots. Childhood vaccination rates for COVID-19 are already low — just 13% of children and 23% of adults have received the 2024-25 COVID-19 vaccine, according to CDC data. Talk of changing the recommendations has been brewing. As the COVID-19 pandemic has waned, experts have discussed the possibility of focusing vaccination efforts on people 65 and older — who are among those most as risk for death and hospitalization. A CDC advisory panel is set to meet in June to make recommendations about the fall shots. Among its options are suggesting shots for high-risk groups but still giving lower-risk people the choice to get vaccinated. A committee work group has endorsed the idea. But Kennedy, a leading anti-vaccine advocate before becoming health secretary, decided not to wait for the scientific panel's review. ___ The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute's Science and Educational Media Group and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
