The
Department
of
Health
and
Human
Services
has
long
advocated
vaccination
as
a
key
component
of
public
health.
Before
Robert
F.
Kennedy,
Jr.
was
confirmed
as
secretary
of
the
nation’s
top
public
health
agency,
the
longtime
vaccine
skeptic
said
he
would
follow
the
science
on
vaccines.
But
Kennedy’s
tenure
so
far
has
the
pharmaceutical
industry,
clinicians,
and
other
healthcare
industry
stakeholders
watching
for
policy
changes.
Kennedy’s
public
comments
amid
the
ongoing
measles
outbreak
in
Texas
have
inconsistencies.
He
made
headlines
for
stating
on
social
media
that
vaccination
is
the
most
effective
way
to
prevent
measles.
But
in
a
subsequent
CBS
interview,
he
undermined
vaccination
by
stating
that
“the
vaccine
wanes
very
quickly.”
Another
red
flag
was
the
abrupt
resignation
of
Peter
Marks
as
director
of
the
FDA’s
Center
for
Biologics
Evaluation
and
Research,
whose
oversight
included
vaccines.
In
his
resignation
letter,
Marks
alleged
that
Kennedy
is
not
interested
in
truth
and
evidence,
but
rather
“subservient
confirmation
of
his
misinformation
and
lies.”
In
a
subsequent
interview
with
The
Associated
Press,
Marks
said
he
was
pushed
out
after
refusing
to
allow
Kennedy’s
team
to
edit
data
in
the
Vaccine
Adverse
Event
Reporting
System
(VAERS),
a
database
of
vaccine
safety
events.
Speaking
at
an
event
this
week,
Kennedy
said
he
is
planning
changes
to
VAERS,
STAT
reported.
Vaccine
makers
aren’t
saying
anything
publicly
about
Kennedy’s
statements
or
Marks’s
comments.
Pfizer,
GSK,
Sanofi,
and
Moderna
did
not
respond
to
messages
seeking
comment.
This
week,
the
CDC’s
Advisory
Committee
on
Immunization
Practices
(ACIP)
met
for
the
first
time
since
Kennedy
became
head
of
HHS.
This
committee
is
important
because
payers
use
ACIP
recommendations
to
guide
their
coverage
decisions
for
vaccines.
The
meeting,
which
was
originally
scheduled
for
February,
was
postponed
in
order
to
gather
public
comment,
HHS
said.
Financial
analysts
are
watching
ACIP
and
the
CDC
for
signs
of
changes
in
the
government’s
vaccine
policies.
“The
fact
that
this
meeting
took
place
after
originally
being
postponed
with
minimal
notice
is
a
small
sign
of
promise
for
the
vaccine
space
and
future
of
the
ACIP,
which
has
been
under
major
scrutiny
since
the
appointment
of
RFK
Jr.
as
HHS
head,”
William
Blair
analyst
Myles
Minter
wrote
in
a
note
sent
to
investors.
Anti-vaccine
rhetoric
did
not
take
over
the
meeting.
Vaccine
presentations
and
discussions
proceeded
in
the
same
manner
as
previous
ACIP
meetings.
Respiratory
syncytial
virus
(RSV)
vaccines
Arexvy,
from
GSK,
and
Abrysvo,
from
Pfizer,
received
affirmative
ACIP
votes
for
use
in
adults
age
50
to
59
who
are
at
increased
risk
of
RSV
disease,
expanding
the
target
population
for
the
products.
GSK
also
secured
an
ACIP
recommendation
for
its
new
meningococcal
vaccine,
Penmenvy.
In
chikungunya
vaccines,
Bavarian
Nordic’s
Vimkunya
received
an
affirmative
ACIP
vote.
But
Valneva’s
chikungunya
vaccine,
Ixchiq,
has
been
under
review
due
to
a
small
number
of
cases
with
adverse
effects.
The
committee
voted
to
recommend
a
precaution
noting
this
risk
in
people
age
65
and
older.
All
of
these
votes
are
just
recommendations.
The
CDC
director
can
accept
or
reject
these
recommendations.
The
agency
is
currently
led
by
acting
director
Susan
Monarez.
President
Trump
nominated
her
to
formally
take
on
the
leadership
role
after
withdrawing
the
nomination
of
Dave
Weldon,
a
physician
and
former
congressman
who
has
expressed
anti-vaccine
views.
So
far,
ACIP
is
continuing
to
make
science-based
vaccine
recommendations.
But
Steven
Lupo,
partner
in
the
life
sciences
practice
at
consultancy
West
Monroe,
said
vaccine
messaging
and
strategy
needs
to
come
from
multiple
places.
Clinicians
have
a
responsibility
to
explain
how
the
umbrella
effect
of
immunity
protects
against
unforeseen
disease.
Insurers
should
make
vaccines
readily
available
and
easy
to
access.
Pharmaceutical
companies
need
to
be
more
transparent
about
the
science
of
their
vaccines
and
the
clinical
data
supporting
them.
“Each
one
has
a
responsibility
in
terms
of
messaging
and
making
the
public
understand
in
the
long
run,
it’s
easier
to
prevent
than
it
is
to
treat,”
Lupo
said.
All
healthcare
industry
stakeholders
can
improve
their
messaging
by
adjusting
to
new
ways
that
people
consume
information.
That
means
moving
away
from
drug
commercials
with
people
dancing,
Lupo
said.
While
the
U.S.
is
different
from
most
of
the
world
in
terms
of
permitting
pharmaceutical
advertising,
Lupo
noted
that
these
commercials
are
aimed
at
clinicians
as
well
as
consumers.
But
pharma
companies
can
also
reach
these
audiences
in
new
ways,
such
as
social
media,
he
said.
Some
companies
have
been
changing
their
messaging
outreach.
Speaking
during
the
World
Medical
Innovation
Forum
in
Boston
last
September,
Moderna
CEO
Stephane
Bancel
said
the
mRNA
company’s
outreach
includes
social
media.
For
example,
Tik
Tok
videos
provide
interviews
and
local
stories
about
people
being
vaccinated,
Bancel
said.
This
approach
takes
advantage
of
localization
that’s
part
of
the
Tik
Tok
algorithm.
Moderna
has
also
been
educating
clinicians
with
data
on
hospitalization
rates
and
death
rates
from
Covid-19
and
influenza
with
localized
data.
“We’ve
used
literally
zip
code
by
zip
code
data,
on
the
hospitalization
rate,
death
rate
of
Covid,
flu,
to
make
people
realize
the
fact,
which
is,
and
doctors
realize,
that
[Covid-19
infection
is]
three
times
higher
risk
of
hospitalization
than
flu,”
Bancel
said.
“So
it
makes
no
sense
from
a
public
health
standpoint
to
give
someone
a
flu
shot
and
not
have
that
discussion
about
Covid.”
However,
drug
companies
face
steeper
messaging
challenges
than
others
because
public
perception
of
the
pharma
industry
is
low,
Lupo
said.
One
way
they
can
overcome
that
is
by
making
the
messaging
simpler
and
more
accessible.
“I
think
we
need
to
make
things
very
relatable
to
people
who
are
not
scientists,
who
are
not
doctors,
who
are
not
clinicians,
so
that
they
can
understand
how
these
vaccines
work
from
a
very
rudimentary
perspective,”
Lupo
said.
The
next
ACIP
recommendations
to
watch
for
are
for
the
Covid-19
vaccines.
Since
they
became
available,
the
committee
has
recommended
universal
use
of
these
vaccines.
ACIP
this
week
discussed
changing
that
recommendations
to
focus
on
people
in
high-risk
groups.
That
narrower
scope
could
reduce
vaccination
rates,
cutting
deeper
into
Covid
vaccine
revenue
that
has
been
falling
for
Pfizer
and
Moderna
since
the
end
of
the
pandemic.
The
next
ACIP
meeting
is
scheduled
for
June
25
and
26.
Photo:
Francesco
Carta
fotografo,
Getty
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