After CDC Stops Recommending Covid-19 Vaccines, Doctors Worry Insurers Will No Longer Cover Shots For Vulnerable Pregnant Women

Earlier this month, Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced that the U.S. would stop recommending the Covid-19 vaccine for healthy children and pregnant women.

This is the latest move by Kennedy to tear down the country’s vaccine guidelines, including an effort to reassess the flu vaccine.

In a video Kennedy posted, he said, “I couldn’t be more pleased to announce that as of today, the Covid vaccine for healthy children and healthy pregnant women has been removed from the C.D.C. recommended immunization schedule.”

Kennedy was accompanied by Dr. Marty Makary, head of the Food and Drug Administration, and Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, head of the National Institutes of Health. There were no C.D.C. officials present at the announcement.

Children with medical conditions are still eligible for the vaccine; however, due to this new policy, there is confusion about whether government programs and insurance will provide coverage for the vaccine.

No research supports Kennedy’s decision to remove this recommendation. There have not been any significant cases of children who have become severely ill as a result of the vaccine. Kennedy has previously refused to admit that Covid vaccines have prevented the deaths of millions.

Doctors have expressed concerns that pregnant women will no longer get free Covid shots since insurers usually follow the CDC’s guidelines.

Similarly, Kennedy has questioned the effectiveness of vaccines for other diseases such as measles. He has probed federal officials for advocating for vaccines.

Kennedy has gone back on his promise not to change immunization policies for children, which he made to Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-Louisiana).

While Kennedy is the head of the HHS, he does not make the final decision on whether to stop recommending the Covid vaccine. The process to cancel vaccine recommendations starts with changes suggested by the C.D.C.’s advisors. Then, the organization’s director can choose to accept, change or reject the proposed changes. The head of the HHS is usually not involved in this process. The C.D.C. does not currently have a permanent head.