Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced Tuesday that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has removed COVID-19 vaccinations from the list of recommended vaccines for healthy children and pregnant women.
The announcement comes after the Food and Drug Administration stated there is insufficient evidence that healthy individuals under 65 would benefit from an additional shot. In response, the agency said it would limit vaccines to those at a higher risk of COVID-19 and to Americans over age 65, allowing them access to annual shots.
The decision to limit COVID-19 vaccines to older adults was made by Vinay Prasad, who was recently appointed director of the Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research. Prasad is a vocal critic of mask mandates and fast-tracked COVID-19 boosters, which became contentious issues during pandemic lockdowns.
Prior to Kennedy's announcement, an annual COVID-19 vaccine was recommended for nearly everyone over six months old. The CDC urged people to get an updated shot each year because protection from vaccines decreases over time.
Kennedy said previous recommendations were made without clinical data supporting a repeat booster strategy.
The CDC's new vaccine recommendations differ slightly from those of the World Health Organization. The WHO does not recommend annual shots for healthy individuals under age 50, unless they have not been previously vaccinated against COVID-19. The WHO, however, recommends that pregnant women receive an updated COVID-19 vaccine during each pregnancy.
Dr. Sean O’Leary, chair of the American Academy of Pediatrics' Committee on Infectious Diseases, said the decision "bypasses a long-established, evidence-based process used to ensure vaccine safety and ignores the expertise of independent medical experts."
"By removing the recommendation, the decision could strip families of choice," he added. "Those who want to vaccinate may no longer be able to, as the implications for insurance coverage remain unclear. It's also unclear whether health care workers would be eligible to be vaccinated.
What is clear is that pregnant women, infants and young children are at higher risk of hospitalization from COVID, and the safety of the COVID vaccine has been widely demonstrated.
