rewrite this title Who should Americans listen to for guidance on vaccination?

Shifts in vaccine guidance under the Trump administration are leaving many people confused about seasonal shots. NPR’s Ayesha Rascoe talks with Dr. Jeff Duchin of the Vaccine Integrity Project.

AYESHA RASCOE, HOST:

The fight over vaccine guidance between professional medical groups and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. spilled out into the open last week. The CDC is no longer recommending that healthy children six months and older get a COVID vaccine. But the American Academy of Pediatrics is sticking to their guidance that those children should get COVID shots. Kennedy attacked the organization for contradicting the CDC. Back in June, Kennedy replaced everyone on the CDC’s vaccine advisory panel. Some of the new members have made inaccurate claims about the safety of vaccines. This leaves many Americans wondering, whom should they listen to for guidance on vaccines?

Dr. Jeff Duchin joins me now to talk about this. He’s an epidemiologist and part of the University of Minnesota’s Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy. Doctor, thank you so much for being here.

JEFF DUCHIN: Good morning, Ayesha.

RASCOE: What do you think of the changing guidance from the CDC?

DUCHIN: Well, I tend to agree with the AAP and many of our other medical professional organizations and public health organizations that have lost confidence and trust in the recent actions HHS has taken at CDC, which seem to undermine the previously evidence-based, transparent and public process for developing vaccine recommendations for the public. So at this point, I think we’re in an unfortunate situation where people are going to have to look to more than one place to get the information they need.

RASCOE: Doesn’t that lead to a lot of confusion, because then how does the average American know whether they should get the flu shot or have their children vaccinated before starting school? Like, how do they know who to trust?

DUCHIN: Well, unfortunately, it does lead to confusion, and I think the first step is your health care provider. If you have a health care provider, typically, you have a trusting relationship and can have an open dialogue. And that’s, you know, the first place to go to talk about vaccines and whether you need them and how frequently you need them, etc. In addition, you know, the challenge will be that there are a number of authoritative, reliable sources, such as the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology, who’s issued their guidance for vaccination of pregnant women with COVID-19 vaccine, as well as influenza and RSV vaccines, that also differs from the CDC guidance.

I just want to emphasize, though, that it’s not just AAP and ACOG who have expressed these concerns. A large number of medical professional organizations, including the Infectious Disease Society of America, the American College of Physicians, the Pediatric Infectious Disease Society, the American Public Health Association, the Society for Maternal and Fetal Medicine and others, have all expressed these concerns. So I do encourage people to take it seriously and look towards these organizations for information before they make their vaccination decisions.

RASCOE: Are you concerned about a growing distrust in public health officials?

DUCHIN: Yes, very concerned about that. You know, that trust is going to have to be reearned by providing clear, transparent, evidence-based data, by having discussions at the patient level. The health care providers and parents and family members and community members are going to have to reestablish trust through dialogue, and it starts by hearing what people’s concerns are. That’s really important.

RASCOE: When people ask you, Dr. Duchin, should I or should my kids get COVID or flu shots this fall, what are you telling them?

DUCHIN: Well, it depends on their personal health status in general. You know, adults 65 and older and those with underlying – all adults with underlying medical conditions certainly should get the COVID shot. Everyone should get an influenza shot, pretty much, who’s eligible. Each year, influenza sends thousands of Americans into the hospital and kills a large number, including children. Same with COVID. You know, the – if you’re at high risk for COVID-19, you’re at great risk of being hospitalized, and some adults in particular are dying. COVID is extremely serious in pregnant women and can affect their babies as well, so pregnant women should be vaccinated. But the general advice is, you know, please check our medical professional associations, as well as talking with your health care provider, because everyone’s situation’s a little bit different.

RASCOE: That’s Dr. Jeff Duchin with the University of Minnesota’s Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy. Thank you so much for joining us.

DUCHIN: It was a pleasure. Thank you, Ayesha.

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