CDC Vaccine Guidance Stalls as Kennedy Panel Freezes and Doctors Go Their Own Way

The federal system for recommending vaccines has ground to a halt, leaving doctors and the public without official guidance on newly approved shots.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has made no recommendation on mFlusiva, a new flu vaccine approved by the Food and Drug Administration for adults aged 50 to 64. The shot is the first flu vaccine built on mRNA technology, which was central to the COVID-19 pandemic response. The CDC said this month it would keep last year's flu vaccine endorsements in place because of "legal uncertainties and inquiries," meaning mFlusiva is not listed among recommended flu shots for the coming fall.

The inaction reflects a broader breakdown. For six decades, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices reviewed vaccine data in public and voted on recommendations that the CDC director almost always adopted, guiding both public and private insurers. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. dismissed the committee last year and replaced it with a panel that included several vaccine critics. In March, a federal judge found Kennedy likely violated federal procedures, barred the new panel from meeting and suspended his decision to reduce the number of vaccines recommended for children.

With the committee sidelined, medical societies that once worked with it have begun issuing their own guidance. Partnering with a University of Minnesota researcher, they have debated evidence privately and produced recommendations that largely match earlier federal ones but include updates. For example, they said the RSV vaccine for women late in pregnancy should be offered through early March, rather than only through January, because the RSV season can run longer. The trade association for private insurers has said it will follow the medical societies' choices and continue paying for those shots.

Other decisions remain unresolved. The FDA approved updated COVID-19 vaccines, but it was only this week that officials confirmed orders could be placed through the Vaccines for Children program, which covers shots for uninsured children. On the HPV vaccine, which is given to preteens to prevent certain cancers, Kennedy moved in January to cut the recommended doses from two to one. That order was suspended by the judge. The American Academy of Pediatrics is weighing its own change and could decide later this year.

Jason Schwartz, a Yale University health policy researcher, said the credibility of the administration on vaccine recommendations is so compromised that even changes aligned with public health trends may be met with skepticism. Meanwhile, the administration is considering changing the federal categories for vaccine recommendations. A group of 15 Democratic governors warned the proposed changes could increase confusion and administrative complexity.