Millions across the U.S. will soon no longer receive routine offers for the Covid-19 vaccine. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced on Tuesday that the vaccine will no longer be recommended for healthy children and pregnant women without underlying conditions.
Kennedy said that the CDC has taken the Covid shot off its standard immunization schedule — a key guideline used by doctors to decide which vaccines children should be given and at what ages. RFK Jr. said he was more than pleased with the announcement, adding that it was "common sense" and "good science." He said he was thrilled with the announcement, which leaked a week ago.
Bombshell Decision to End Covid Vaccine
The announcement comes just days after the FDA announced new limits on Covid booster availability for adults under 65. The agency also said that any future boosters for this age group would now require data from extended and expensive clinical trials before gaining approval.
In a video accompanying the post, RFK Jr said, "Last year, the Biden administration urged healthy children to get another Covid shot despite the lack of any clinical data to support the repeat booster strategy in children."
This new guidance marks a sharp shift from earlier recommendations, which had advised that everyone six months and older receive the Covid vaccine.
The recommendation to give the Covid vaccine to young and healthy people has been criticized, largely because these groups have a low chance of being hospitalized or dying from the virus.
Some have also voiced concerns about potential side effects of the vaccine, such as myocarditis — a rare condition involving inflammation of the heart — which appears to occur slightly more often in young adults.
Questions have also been raised about whether pregnant women truly benefit from receiving the vaccine. However, research has consistently shown that the shot is safe for pregnant women and does not increase the risk of miscarriage, stillbirth, or birth defects.
Timely Announcement
Some critics argue that while the change is happening during a period of low public trust in health authorities, the change risks sending mixed signals about the importance of vaccines. Kennedy Jr. shared the news on X (formerly known as Twitter), along with a video featuring himself alongside Dr. Marty Makary, the new head of the FDA, and Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, the newly appointed director of the NIH, the agency responsible for funding medical research.
"That ends today. It's common sense and it's good science," Bhattacharya said.
"There's no evidence that healthy kids need it today and most countries have stopped recommending it for children," Makary added.
More than 73 million people — roughly 20 percent of the population — are under the age of 18 in the United States. Besides, around 5.3 million pregnancies occur each year.
A "healthy" child or pregnant woman generally refers to someone without any preexisting medical conditions. For people in this group who do have health issues, the Covid vaccine is still advised.
The CDC provides a list of more than 20 health conditions that increase the risk of developing severe illness from Covid-19, making someone with these conditions eligible for vaccination. These include issues such as obesity and a sedentary lifestyle.
Reports began surfacing two weeks ago that the administration was planning to scale back its Covid vaccine recommendations, with early indications suggesting the shot would no longer be advised for pregnant women, children, and teens.
Last week, the FDA announced that it would no longer automatically authorize yearly updated Covid vaccines.
