At least a dozen US states have sued the Trump administration over sweeping changes to childhood vaccine recommendations, arguing the rollback threatens public health. The lawsuit challenges new CDC guidance limiting immunizations and the replacement of federal vaccine advisers, warning the move could increase outbreak risks and strain state resources.
The Trump administration has been sued by at least a dozen states over its rollback of vaccine recommendations for children, calling the move an illegal threat to public health. According to the argument put forward by the states, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention put children’s lives at risk after announcing last month that it would stop recommending that all children get immunized against the flu, rotavirus, hepatitis A, hepatitis B, some forms of meningitis, and RSV.
The new guidance – which has drawn sharp criticism from doctors- protects against those diseases only for certain groups deemed high risk or when doctors recommend them in what’s called “shared decision-making”.
What does the lawsuit say?
Filed by a coalition of at least 14 attorneys general and the governor of Pennsylvania, the lawsuit has asked the courts to nullify the administration’s immunisation decision. It has also challenged “the unlawful replacement” of members of the federal Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, who recommend vaccines for Americans.
The suit names the Department of Health and Human Services and Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as defendants, along with acting CDC director Dr. Jay Bhattacharya.
According to the lawsuit, the new vaccine recommendations not only ignore long-standing medical guidance but will make states like Arizona and California spend more to protect against outbreaks. “The health and safety of children across the country is not a political issue,” said Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes, a Democrat, at a news conference. “It is not a culture war talking point.”
“H.H.S. Secretary R.F.K. Jr. and his C.D.C. are flouting decades of scientific research, ignoring credible medical experts, and threatening to strain state resources and make America’s children sicker,” said Rob Bonta, attorney general of California. “The fact is, vaccines save lives and save our state’s money,” he added.
Advisory panel bypassed
The schedule’s announcement bypassed A.C.I.P. – the advisory panel that recommends which shots the children should get and when. The committee’s decisions have usually guided states in determining the vaccines they need for entry into day care and elementary schools. It is also imperative for the insurance companies to cover the shots the members have recommended.
In June last year, Kennedy fired all 17 previous panelists and appointed the new ones after sharing his skepticism of vaccines and mandates.
More than 100 public health experts and organizations this month have filed an amicus brief in support of that lawsuit, which also seeks to reverse the new schedule and to stop the new advisers from meeting. A federal court in Massachusetts heard arguments in that case this month and is expected to rule in the coming days.