A group of health organizations has come together to file a lawsuit against Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. They claim his May announcement, which removed healthy children and pregnant women from the CDC’s recommended immunization schedule for the COVID-19 vaccine, constitutes a pressing public health emergency.
Lawsuit filed
The lawsuit was officially filed in Massachusetts on Monday, July 7. The plaintiffs include the American Academy of Pediatrics, American College of Physicians, Inc., Infectious Diseases Society of America and several other organizations.
Also listed as a plaintiff, a Jane Doe who was unable to get access to a COVID-19 vaccination shot.
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“What we’re aiming to do with this lawsuit is put a stop to the secretary’s path of destruction of vaccines, which has just been a steady stream of actions that really do undermine vaccine confidence and vaccine access in the United States,” Richard Hughes, a partner at Epstein Becker Green, told Straight Arrow News. “This is a case where we really, in terms of our legal claims, are focused on challenging his directive rescinding COVID vaccine recommendations.”
Hughes says there is also a chance more plaintiffs will be added to the suit as time goes on. He says if there is “final agency action” from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) on other vaccinations, then they are likely to amend the complaint.
Hughes cited the recent measles outbreak as an example, adding the HHS Department did not put together any kind of campaign to encourage vaccinations.
“When we have all of these deaths playing out, or these cases and deaths, it is concerning when the CDC can’t conduct a communications campaign to encourage vaccination,” Hughes said. “So there’s just a laundry list of things that the secretary’s done that are deeply concerning that we would like to stop.”
A major cause for concern behind Kennedy’s move is that some people could lose their health insurance coverage for these vaccines.
For example, UnitedHealthcare only covers vaccines subject to Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommendations. Secretary Kennedy’s new guidance will no longer include the COVID-19 vaccine for healthy children or pregnant women.
Hughes says those ACIP recommendation changes could also impact vaccination coverage and availability at pharmacies.
“States have said, you know, we’re going to allow pharmacists to administer vaccines, but they have to do it in accordance with ACIP recommendations,” Hughes said. “States are variable on that point, but it does mean that pharmacy access and access in some states will be automatically lost.”
Straight Arrow News reached out to the Department of Health and Human Services for comment on the lawsuit but has not yet heard back.
Secretary Kennedy’s announcement
Kennedy announced the change in a video posted on X, surrounded by FDA Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary and NIH Director Dr. Jay Bhattacharya.
Kennedy said there is a “lack of any clinical data to support the repeat booster strategy in children.” Makary added that most countries have stopped recommending it for children.
The World Health Organization no longer recommends routine revaccinations for healthy children. However, they do recommend a single dose for any child or pregnant woman who has never received a COVID-19 vaccine before.
The change in recommendation could prevent people from getting that first dose.
The department also sent out a document explaining this decision, citing several studies, including one they say showed a higher rate of fetal loss for pregnant women if they received vaccinations before 20 weeks of pregnancy.
However, one of the authors of that study told Politico that “the results of our manuscript were misinterpreted.” She went on to say researchers found “no association between SARS-CoV-2 vaccination and an increased risk of miscarriage.”
Vaccine recommendation changes
This unilateral change from Secretary Kennedy does not follow typical protocol for updating vaccination recommendations.
Changes typically occur after an expert panel develops those recommendations. These will then go to the CDC Director and, once adopted, become policy.
Earlier this year, Secretary Kennedy dismissed all 17 members of that panel before replacing them with his own choices.
“Today we are prioritizing the restoration of public trust above any specific pro- or anti-vaccine agenda,” Secretary Kennedy said in a statement. “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.”
The change prompted concern from medical experts, including those behind this most recent lawsuit.
“He replaced them with seven members with anti-vax views and has allowed them to basically compromise that forum that we’ve trusted for 61 years to provide sound scientific science-based recommendations,” Hughes said. “So he’s interfered greatly. And that’s not to mention just the various statements that he’s made that undermine vaccines.”
