The United States government has officially stopped recommending routine COVID-19 vaccinations for healthy children and pregnant women, bypassing the usual review process by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This shift in policy was announced on Tuesday by US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. via social media, marking a significant change in the nation’s approach to COVID-19 immunization.
Kennedy, along with FDA Commissioner Marty Makary and National Institutes of Health Director Jay Bhattacharya, released a joint video confirming that COVID-19 vaccines have been removed from the CDC’s recommended immunization schedule for these groups. This update follows new restrictions introduced last week that limit vaccine eligibility mainly to older adults and those at higher risk of severe COVID-19 complications.
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Typically, changes to the CDC’s immunization schedule require review and approval from the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) before the CDC director finalizes them. However, the ACIP has not yet voted on this recent change, sparking criticism from health experts. William Schaffner, an infectious disease expert at Vanderbilt University Medical Center and ACIP consultant, called the decision “turning the process upside down” and noted that the committee had planned a June vote expected to focus on more targeted recommendations rather than a complete withdrawal.
Kennedy, known for his critical stance on vaccines, has been pushing to reshape the US health system along the lines of former President Donald Trump’s goal to reduce federal government involvement. He criticized the Biden administration’s earlier push for repeated COVID boosters in healthy children despite insufficient clinical evidence.
Previously, the CDC had recommended updated COVID vaccines for everyone aged six months and older based on expert advice. Insurers like Blue Cross Blue Shield and CVS Health are now reviewing how these changes will impact coverage for COVID vaccines.
Legal experts, including law professor Dorit Reiss from UC Law San Francisco, have warned that bypassing the ACIP’s review process could expose the CDC to potential legal challenges.
Despite the policy shift, numerous studies involving hundreds of thousands of pregnant women worldwide show that COVID vaccines are safe and beneficial for both mothers and their babies, according to CDC data.
Makary argued that healthy children no longer need routine COVID vaccinations, pointing out that most countries have already stopped recommending vaccines for this group. Pediatric expert Dr. Cody Meissner from Dartmouth College, who previously opposed mask mandates for children, supported the decision, stating that earlier recommendations were overblown and politically influenced, especially given the decreasing severity of COVID-19 among young children.
Representatives from vaccine manufacturers Moderna and Pfizer did not provide comments on the policy change.
