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- Dr. Peter Chin-Hong<\/b>, Professor of Medicine and Director of the Immunocompromised Host Infectious Diseases Program, University of California, San Francisco<\/li>\n
- Dr. Benjamin Neuman<\/b>, Professor of Biology, Texas A&M University<\/li>\n
- Dr. Jirair Ratevosian<\/b>, Associate Research Scientist, Yale University<\/li>\n
- Dr. William Schaffner<\/b>, Professor of Medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
\nCovid Vaccines Slashed for Pregnant Women and Children<\/b><\/b><\/p>\n
In a surprise announcement last week, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. declared that Covid-19 vaccinations will no longer be recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for healthy children, pregnant women, or adults under 65. The announcement, made on social media ahead of the CDC\u2019s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) June 25\u201327 meeting, bypassed the usual science-driven review process \u2014 and came just days before Kennedy fired all 17 members of ACIP, replacing them with new appointees, many of whom hold vaccine-skeptic views.<\/p>\n
Kennedy cited a lack of clinical data to support continued Covid boosters for low-risk populations. But infectious disease experts sharply disagree. \u201cPregnant people are relatively immunocompromised,\u201d said t Dr. Peter Chin-Hong. \u201cWithout vaccination during pregnancy, we risk serious Covid outcomes for both mother and child \u2014 especially those under six months who rely on maternal antibodies.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chin-Hong warned that the new policy will confuse millions and lead to fewer people getting vaccinated \u2014 even those still eligible. \u201cPeople will be unsure who qualifies and may worry about out-of-pocket costs. That confusion alone could tank fall uptake,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
A Global Lifeline on the Brink<\/b><\/b><\/p>\n
While domestic vaccine guidance stirs controversy, international aid efforts are facing collapse. Congress has failed to reauthorize PEPFAR, the President\u2019s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, which has saved over 26 million lives since its launch in 2003. The program\u2019s legal authorization expired in March, and a 90-day Trump-imposed pause on all foreign aid funding has already triggered mass disruptions.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe estimate up to 100,000 preventable deaths from that pause alone,\u201d said Dr. Jirair Ratevosian. \u201cPeople were kicked off treatment. Clinics closed. Prevention programs were suspended. This isn\u2019t theoretical \u2014 it\u2019s happening now.\u201d<\/p>\n
If Congress fails to reauthorize PEPFAR soon, Ratevosian warned, the consequences could be catastrophic: up to 11 million new HIV infections and 3 million deaths by 2030. Already, the program’s uncertainty has mobilized activists to protest in ways not seen since the height of the AIDS crisis in the 1980s.<\/p>\n
The Return of Vaccine-Preventable Diseases<\/b><\/b><\/p>\n
As the U.S. backs away from both domestic and global vaccination efforts, cases of preventable illnesses are rising sharply. The CDC has reported over 8,000 whooping cough cases so far this year \u2014 double last year\u2019s total \u2014 and 30 states are experiencing measles outbreaks. The once-eradicated disease has seen over 1,000 confirmed U.S. cases in 2025 alone.<\/p>\n
Experts attribute the spike in part to growing mistrust in vaccines. \u201cVaccination has picked up a political veneer,\u201d said Dr. William Schaffner. \u201cDiseases like polio, measles, and tetanus were once nearly eliminated. But as memory of those threats fades, so does parental urgency.\u201d<\/p>\n
Schaffner and others warn that if Medicaid is slashed by the $780 billion proposed in Trump\u2019s budget, childhood vaccination disparities will widen dramatically \u2014 undoing one of the most successful and equitable public health efforts in American history.<\/p>\n
Globally, the effects may be even worse. \u201cThe U.S. was the top funder of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance,\u201d said Dr. Benjamin Neuman. \u201cWith that support gone and USAID shut down, vaccine trials, particularly in disease-endemic regions, will be underpowered. We won\u2019t be able to accurately test whether vaccines work.\u201d<\/p>\n
He continued: \u201cWhat\u2019s driving these changes isn\u2019t science. It\u2019s politics. And when science is sidelined, the consequences are predictable: more illness, more death, more preventable suffering.\u201d<\/p>\n
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All images provided by ACoM.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Amid a sweeping overhaul of public health policy, the Trump administration is moving to sharply limit vaccine access and funding for global health programs \u2014 drawing fierce backlash from medical experts who warn that the changes could reverse decades of progress in preventing disease and saving lives. In a media briefing on May 30, hosted…<\/p>\n
- Dr. Benjamin Neuman<\/b>, Professor of Biology, Texas A&M University<\/li>\n