Leading US medical groups sue health secretary over COVID vaccine policy changes
Organizations urge parents, patients to follow vaccine guidance by qualified medical professionals, says joint statement criticizing Robert Kennedy Jr.'s moves
HAMILTON, Canada
Leading US medical organizations and a pregnant physician filed a lawsuit Monday against US Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., accusing him of unlawfully overturning COVID-19 vaccine recommendations for children and pregnant individuals.
The lawsuit, titled American Academy of Pediatrics v. Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., was filed in the US District Court for the District of Massachusetts by the pediatrics group plus others including the American College of Physicians, Infectious Diseases Society of America, Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine, and an anonymous pregnant physician.
"This administration is an existential threat to vaccination in America, and those in charge are only just getting started," said Richard H. Hughes IV, lead counsel for the plaintiffs.
"If left unchecked, Secretary Kennedy will accomplish his goal of ridding the United States of vaccines, which would unleash a wave of preventable harm on our nation’s children," it added.
Dr. Susan Kressly, who heads the pediatrics group, said in the statement: "These decisions are founded in fear and not evidence, and will make our children and communities more vulnerable to infectious diseases."
Dr. Tina Tan, who heads the infectious disease group, added: "We will not stand by while a single federal official unilaterally and effectively strips Americans of their choice to vaccinate."
The plaintiffs said Kennedy’s actions bypassed scientific review and ignored federal procedures.
"The plaintiff organizations urge parents and patients to follow their qualified medical professionals' vaccine guidance," said a joint statement.
Kennedy, a longtime vaccine opponent with no background in public health, has made numerous debunked claims about the harms that vaccines cause, but since being appointed by President Donald Trump, he has overseen a series of steps that have undermined vaccine access, including cutting funding for vaccine distribution to children of lower income families, according to media reports.
Dismantling the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) committee of top health and medical experts has been Kennedy's most aggressive move so far, according to critics.
