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The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) said on Tuesday that it will start winding down mRNA vaccine development efforts under a federal health agency focused on developing medical countermeasures to address public health emergencies.
mRNA vaccines have been credited by public health experts with saving millions of lives during the COVID-19 pandemic, and many infectious disease experts have stressed that years of research have shown the shots are both safe and effective. But HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a prominent vaccine skeptic, claimed in a statement accompanying HHS’s announcement that “data show these vaccines fail to protect effectively against upper respiratory infections like COVID and flu.”
The move, which HHS said comes after “a comprehensive review of mRNA-related investments initiated during the COVID-19 public health emergency,” will involve canceling and de-scoping various contracts under the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA). The “wind-down” will impact 22 projects that come out to a total of nearly $500 million, according to HHS’s press release.
“We’re shifting that funding toward safer, broader vaccine platforms that remain effective even as viruses mutate,” Kennedy said.
Kennedy has faced widespread criticism from public health experts over the years for spreading medical disinformation, including about vaccines. His nomination by President Donald Trump in November to lead HHS sparked outcry from the science and medical communities, but he was ultimately confirmed to the role in February.
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Tuesday’s announcement marks HHS’s latest move under Kennedy’s leadership to significantly change the country’s immunization policy. In May, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said that it will stop recommending annual COVID-19 vaccines for children and most adults. In June, Kennedy said that he would be retiring all 17 members of a committee that provides recommendations on vaccines to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Kennedy appointed new members to the committee, and last month, HHS adopted a controversial recommendation from the panel to remove the preservative thimerosal from flu vaccines, despite extensive research showing it to be safe in the small amounts included in some shots.
HHS said on Tuesday that “some final-stage contracts … will be allowed to run their course to preserve prior taxpayer investment,” but that “no new mRNA-based projects will be initiated.” The agency said that “other uses of mRNA technology within the department are not impacted” by the move. It also said that BARDA will shift its focus to “platforms with stronger safety records and transparent clinical and manufacturing data practices,” adding that “technologies that were funded during the emergency phase but failed to meet current scientific standards will be phased out in favor of evidence-based, ethically grounded solutions – like whole-virus vaccines and novel platforms.”
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