Here's how RFK Jr.'s hand-picked vaccine advisory committee is starting to reshape vaccine policy

2 weeks ago

A national vaccine advisory committee signaled a caller attack to U.S. vaccine argumentation aft a two-day meeting.

SCOTT DETROW, HOST:

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has promised to alteration nan country's vaccine policies. And during contentious meetings successful Atlanta this week, vaccine advisers for nan Centers for Disease Control and Prevention began to do conscionable that. The sheet was handpicked by Kennedy. NPR wellness analogous Pien Huang was astatine their two-day gathering and joins america now. Hi, Pien.

PIEN HUANG, BYLINE: Hey, Scott.

DETROW: What benignant of changes did nan advisors make?

HUANG: So they voted to constrictive nan proposal connected nan COVID booster shot, and they besides made a alteration successful nan puerility vaccine schedule, recommending against a bales and chickenpox combo changeable for young children.

And while these changes weren't arsenic drastic arsenic immoderate aesculapian and nationalist wellness experts had feared, this gathering did show that these members, who Kennedy chose aft firing nan full sheet backmost successful June, is starting to fig retired really this works, and they're starting disconnected connected an eager agenda, backed by Kennedy, who has a history of being very captious of vaccines.

DETROW: Let's conscionable make this news you tin usage for a moment. I'm judge a batch of group listening aliases wondering, tin I spell into a pharmacy, a CVS, whatever, and get a vaccine changeable for illustration I person nan past fewer years?

HUANG: The reply is mixed. So successful immoderate states, yes, and successful different states, it's not clear. And that's because nan group has recommended nan vaccine to everybody nether thing called shared objective decision-making, which intends that patients are expected to talk to a aesculapian supplier astir risks and benefits earlier they get one. But astatine this point, billions of COVID shots person been fixed out, truthful this benignant of counseling would adhd a caller hurdle.

Also nan sheet wanted input connected what goes into that counseling. They voted to adhd much chat astir theoretical risks to nan vaccine accusation sheet, and Retsef Levi, nan sheet personnel who led that discussion, focused connected things he said were unknown.

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RETSEF LEVI: Do we cognize each nan answers? No. Did we perceive satisfactory explanations from nan companies and nan FDA? Absolutely, no.

HUANG: So that accusation expanse for consumers could spell from 1 that summarizes nan astir important documented broadside effects of nan COVID vaccine - things for illustration fevers, assemblage aches, a uncommon consequence of bosom problems for young men - to 1 that includes a batch of speculation, which could confuse group and dissuade them from getting vaccinated.

DETROW: OK, truthful that's intelligibly nan header here, but I'm wondering what other was connected nan table?

HUANG: So location was a connection to urge that states require prescriptions for COVID vaccines, which would make them overmuch harder for patients to get. And aft a charged chat connected it, it was defeated.

And nan sheet besides tabled a connection to alteration nan hepatitis B vaccine schedule for babies. Now, immoderate members said that nan existent policy, which recommends a changeable correct aft birth, is moving fine, and they saw nary logic to alteration it.

Now, location was immoderate confusion, and it did look astatine times that members didn't look to afloat understand really their votes would impact policies and coverage.

DETROW: To that point, what is nan effect of these votes? What do they affect?

HUANG: This group's recommendations shape nan ground for which vaccines are covered by wellness security aliases subsidized done national programs, and an illustration of really that useful is to look astatine nan different ballot that they did return connected nan MMRV vaccine. That's a operation changeable for measles, mumps, rubella and chickenpox.

And this vaccine comes pinch a somewhat higher consequence of causing fevers that tin lead to seizures successful children nether four. Kids mostly retrieve from them beautiful quickly. But they tin besides get nan aforesaid protection from getting nan MMR and nan chickenpox changeable separately, truthful that's really astir kids get it.

But up to 15% of parents inquire for nan combo shot, and here's why, according to pediatrician Cody Meissner, who's nan only personnel who served connected this sheet before.

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CODY MEISSNER: Some parents don't want to administer 2 doses of a vaccine if they tin person 1 and get nan aforesaid grade of coverage. Why are we taking distant that option?

HUANG: Despite Meissner's objections, nan committee voted to extremity giving it to children nether four, and while that proposal seems for illustration a mini change, what it could do is make it truthful that Medicaid, nan Children's Health Insurance Program and nan Vaccines for Children programme nary longer screen nan changeable for this property group.

DETROW: I mean, is nan apical statement of each of this that each of these policies are astir to go a batch much confusing?

HUANG: Yeah. I mean, there's gonna beryllium a batch of different group saying different things. So a batch of states person started to do their ain thing. About a twelve states led by Democrats are moving distant from their reliance connected this committee, and besides rather a fewer aesculapian groups are breaking pinch this committee and making their ain recommendations.

DETROW: That is NPR wellness analogous Pien Huang. Thanks truthful much.

HUANG: You're welcome, Scott.

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