The decision Tuesday night by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the U.S. Health Secretary, to cut nearly $500 million in federal funding for the development of mRNA vaccines, was too far even for a former Trump surgeon general.
Kennedy halted 22 projects primarily targeting respiratory viruses like COVID-19 and influenza. Federal contracts and proposals with leading pharmaceutical companies — including Pfizer, Moderna, and Sanofi — were affected. Investments managed by the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, or BARDA, were also pulled back.
Kennedy, a vaccine conspiracy theorist, claimed that mRNA technology doesn’t “perform well against viruses that infect the upper respiratory tract," and baselessly claimed they “can actually prolong pandemics as the virus constantly mutates to escape the protective effects of the vaccine.”
“We’re prioritizing the development of safer, broader vaccine strategies like whole virus vaccines and novel platforms that don’t collapse when viruses mutate,” Kennedy said, according to Rolling Stone.
Jerome Adams, who served as surgeon general much of President Donald Trump’s first term, tore into Kennedy's decision in a post on X.
"I’ve tried to be objective & non-alarmist in response to current HHS actions – but quite frankly this move is going to cost lives. mRNA technology has uses that go far beyond vaccines… and the vaccine they helped develop in record time is credited with saving millions," he said.
In a separate post, Adams agreed with infectious diseases doctor Jake Scott, who said the idea that mRNA vaccines "failed" because they didn't block all respiratory infections "reveals a fundamental misunderstanding of immunology."
"No vaccine for flu, RSV, or COVID has ever done that. The goal is preventing severe disease, and mRNA vaccines delivered," said Scott. "They saved millions of lives and gave us a platform that can be rapidly updated as new threats emerge. Walking away from that undermines our ability to respond to the next pandemic and puts lives at risk."
Adams agreed with Scott's assessment and added, "We must also acknowledge that part of the blame lies in (often politicized) messaging that this was a 'pandemic of the unvaccinated,' and that 'if you get this vaccine you won’t get Covid.'"
In another thread, Adams touted mRNA research for helping develop COVID vaccines in "record time" and saving millions of lives.
"Cutting half a billion in mRNA funding, as HHS Sec. Kennedy proposes, isn’t just bad policy - it’s dangerous," he said.
Adams warned that attacking mRNA research means "turning our backs on more than just COVID vaccines."
"This platform is being used to develop vaccines and therapies for: Flu RSV HIV Zika Cancer (yes, cancer) Autoimmune diseases And more... Ending and/or politicizing support risks ALL of that."