Federal judge blocks RFK Jr. reforms. in the immunization program for children
A federal judge in Massachusetts on Monday blocked Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
The decision stems from a lawsuit by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and other medical groups brought by the Department of Health and Human Services, arguing that Kennedy’s changes to vaccine recommendations and the powerful vaccine advisory committee violate federal law.
In January, Kennedy and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention made sweeping changes to the childhood immunization program, reducing the number of recommended shots from 18 to 11. The change lowered the recommendation that all children should be protected against hepatitis A, hepatitis B, RSV, dengue and two types of bacterial meningitis.
In response, more than 200 groups, including the American Medical Association, the March of Dimes and the Autism Science Foundation, announced that they would ignore the changes and follow the AAP’s vaccine schedule, instead.
The judge also suspended the new members Kennedy appointed to the CDC’s vaccine advisory committee starting in June. The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices helps shape US immunization policy, including recommendations that influence childhood immunization schedules and which insurance policies should cover them.
The council was supposed to meet on Wednesday and Thursday. According to AAP’s lawyer, Richard Hughes, the judge’s decision actually stops the meeting from happening.
An HHS official confirmed that the meeting has been postponed.
The decision also halted any votes Kennedy’s ACIP had taken since June, including a vote not to recommend the hepatitis B vaccine for all newborns.
The decision sets back Kennedy, a longtime anti-vaccine activist who promised to restore trust in public health agencies, but whose controversial policies have caused confusion among pediatricians and contributed to increased distrust of childhood vaccinations, experts say. A recent survey from the University of Pennsylvania’s Annenberg Public Policy Center found that trust in public health institutions has declined during President Donald Trump’s second term.
“Today is the day to celebrate the victory of science over misinformation,” said Dr. Richard Besser, president of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. “This is a major blow to Kennedy’s vaccination policies.”
Dr. Andrew Racine, president of the AAP, said the decision “restores some level of clarity” about childhood vaccinations. “If anyone has any questions about which immunization schedule is right for their child, the best thing to do is talk to their pediatrician.”
The decision could still be appealed to the Supreme Court, Hughes said.
In a statement, Andrew Nixon, a spokesman for HHS, said the agency “looks forward to this judge’s ruling being overturned like his other efforts to prevent the Trump administration.”
Kennedy has made a series of moves to reshape federal vaccine policy since taking office.
In June, Kennedy fired all 17 ACIP members and replaced them with appointees, many of whom were policy critics.
He also issued new rules on how vaccines are tested, measures experts say will make it harder to approve new vaccines. Kennedy also moved to limit the use of Covid vaccines – making them harder to get for people under 65 – and removed the recommendation that healthy children and pregnant women get the shot. He also took a hard line on shots using mRNA technology.
