WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump’s administration on Tuesday (Aug 5) announced it would terminate 22 federal contracts for mRNA-based vaccines, questioning the safety of a technology credited with helping end the COVID-19 pandemic and saving millions of lives.
The announcement, made by Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr, marks his latest effort to weave vaccine skepticism into the core of US government policy.
“We reviewed the science, listened to the experts, and acted,” Kennedy said in a statement.
The health department’s Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) is “terminating 22 mRNA vaccine development investments because the data show these vaccines fail to protect effectively against upper respiratory infections like COVID and flu”, he added.
“We’re shifting that funding toward safer, broader vaccine platforms that remain effective even as viruses mutate.”
The changes affect Moderna’s mRNA bird flu vaccine – a move the company itself disclosed in May – as well as numerous other programmes, including “rejection or cancellation of multiple pre-award solicitations” from pharmaceutical giants Pfizer and Sanofi.
In total, the affected projects are worth “nearly US$500 million”, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) said. Certain late-stage projects were excluded from the move “to preserve prior taxpayer investment.”
“Let me be absolutely clear: HHS supports safe, effective vaccines for every American who wants them,” Secretary Kennedy said.
“That’s why we’re moving beyond the limitations of mRNA and investing in better solutions.”
