A federal judge on Monday temporarily blocked federal health officials from cutting the number of vaccines recommended for every child, said U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. likely violated federal procedures in revamping a key vaccine advisory committee.
The ruling halts an order by Kennedy — announced in January — to end broad recommendations for vaccinations against flu, rotavirus, hepatitis A, hepatitis B, some forms of meningitis, and RSV.
Leading medical organizations expressed alarm that such changes would undermine protections against multiple diseases. The American Academy of Pediatrics and others amended a lawsuit filed in July, asking the judge to prevent this drastic scale-back of the nation’s vaccination schedule.
The lawsuit originally filed in Boston focused on Kennedy's decision to cease recommending COVID-19 vaccinations for most children and pregnant women.
As Kennedy took further controversial steps, medical societies urged Judge Brian E. Murphy to intervene to maintain public health standards. The amended lawsuit seeks the court's review of Kennedy’s actions related to the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), which informs public health vaccine recommendations.
Kennedy, a prominent anti-vaccine activist previously, disbanded the entire ACIP panel and replaced it with members including vocal critics of vaccines.
Murphy indicated that Kennedy’s changes likely breached federal law, and all reappointments and decisions by the restructured committee are currently stayed.
According to Andrew Nixon, a spokesperson for HHS, “HHS looks forward to this judge’s decision being overturned just like his other attempts to keep the Trump administration from governing.”
The ACIP was set to meet this week to discuss COVID-19 vaccines among other topics, but this meeting is now postponed.
“This committee as currently constituted cannot function,” said attorney Richard Hughes IV, representing the AAP. “How can a committee meet without nearly the entirety of its membership?”
The event underscores ongoing tensions between public health narratives and vaccine hesitancy as the U.S. addresses evolving health concerns.
