West Coast states issue joint vaccine guidelines in shift away from CDC
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(NEW YORK) — Four Western U.S. states have come together to issue unified vaccine recommendations for the upcoming respiratory illness season, and California has enacted a new law to base the state’s immunization guidance on independent medical organizations, rather than the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The West Coast states including California, Washington, Oregon, and Hawaii — all led by Democratic governors — banded together earlier this month to create the West Coast Health Alliance (WCHA), citing what they called an erosion of trust in the CDC.
“The alliance represents a unified regional response to the Trump Administration’s destruction of the U.S. CDC’s credibility and scientific integrity,” stated a press release Wednesday from California Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Also on Wednesday, Newsom signed a new law, which will shift the immunization recommendations the state will recommend from the CDC to independent medical organizations that include the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP), American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG).
The recommendations issued by the West Coast states on Wednesday include guidance for receiving the COVID-19, flu and RSV vaccines.
“Science matters. We will ensure our policies are based on rigorous science. We stand united with our partner states and medical experts to put public health and safety before politics. I will continue to do everything in my power to protect Washingtonians,” said Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson.
The announcement came the day ahead of a two-day meeting of the CDC’s the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), during which the panel of advisers recently picked by HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy is expected to vote Thursday on some vaccines on the CDC childhood immunization schedule and Friday on recommendations for COVID-19 vaccines.
The FDA has approved the new COVID-19 vaccines only for those at high risk for severe illness including those 65 and older. Anyone who falls out of those categories is allowed to get a prescription for the vaccine after discussing it with their doctor.
The association that represents many insurance companies (AHIP) pledged to cover the cost for any vaccine that is part of the current guidelines before the new ACIP makes their recommendations this week. The current guidelines suggest anyone older than 6 months should consider getting the COVID-19 and annual flu shot until at least the end of 2026.
Several states have also made rules that allow anyone who wants a vaccine to get one at their pharmacy.
In a statement earlier this month, a spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services blasted the West Coast states’ plans for a health alliance, criticizing COVID-era policies in “Democrat-run states.”
The statement added, “ACIP remains the scientific body guiding immunization recommendations in this country, and HHS will ensure policy is based on rigorous evidence and Gold Standard Science, not the failed politics of the pandemic.
(WASHINGTON) — The Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday approved updated COVID-19 vaccines for some Americans.
The vaccines were approved for use in adults aged 65 and older and for those between ages 5 and 64 with at least one underlying condition that puts them at high risk for severe COVID.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
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(WASHINGTON) — The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), made up of members recently hand-selected by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., voted 5-1 on Thursday to recommend against flu vaccines containing the preservative thimerosal.
A few moments before, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s vaccine advisory committee voted 6-0 to recommend all Americans aged 6 months and older receive an annual influenza vaccine.
One committee member, Vicky Pebsworth, abstained on each vote.
Thimerosal is a mercury-based preservative, which is used to prevent microbial contamination of vaccines. Most flu vaccines currently used in the United States contain little to no thimerosal, but both the Food and Drug Administration and the CDC say there is no evidence low doses of thimerosal in vaccines cause harm other than minor reactions at the injection site, such as redness or swelling.
Additionally, a 2010 CDC study found exposure to vaccines and immunoglobulins that contain thimerosal, in prenatal or infant stages, does not increase risk for autism spectrum disorder.
This preservative was previously used in some common childhood immunizations, However, in the late 1990s, federal health agencies, the American Academy of Pediatrics and vaccine manufacturers agreed to reduce or eliminate thimerosal in vaccines as a precautionary measure, which public health experts previously told ABC News gave rise to anti-vaccine groups alleging thimerosal is not safe and fueled speculation that mercury causes autism.
Kennedy, who has promoted vaccine-skeptic views that experts and decades of robust research have refuted, wrote a book in 2014 falsely claiming thimerosal is “toxic to brain tissue” and may cause autism, calling for its removal from all vaccines.
During the ACIP meeting, Lyn Redwood, a former president of Children’s Health Defense, a group that used to be chaired by Kennedy, gave a highly charged presentation as a private citizen. She claimed the preservative was toxic to the brain and refuted evidence-based claims that there has been no proven harm from thimerosal in vaccines.
Her presentation received pushback from ACIP member Dr. Cody Meissner, who was the only member to vote against the recommendation. He said there “is no scientific evidence that thimerosal has caused problems.”
“The risk for influenza is so much greater than the non-existing risk from thimerosal,” he added.
Meissner said vaccines with thimerosal are metabolized as ethylmercury, not methylmercury, which is the form of mercury found in fish and shellfish, and is known to be a neurotoxin.
“I’m not quite sure how to respond to this presentation,” he said. “This is an old issue that has been addressed in the past. Ethylmercury is excreted much more quickly from the body. It is not associated with the high neurotoxicity that methylmercury [is].”
Meissner also added that thimerosal is included in most multi-dose vaccines administered around the world because single-dose vials are more expensive, and removing thimerosal could increase the costs of vaccines.
“Thimerosal is included in most vaccines that are administered around the globe, and that is because single-dose vials are more expensive, and many countries cannot afford a single-dose vial,” Meissner said.
He went on, “I realize ACIP is focused on the United States, but the recommendations that the ACIP makes are followed among many countries around the world and removing thimerosal from all vaccines that are used in other countries, for example, is going to reduce access to these vaccines, it will increase cost.”
Multiple liaisons of medical groups in the committee also questioned in the meeting why Redwood was permitted to present given her limited scientific background and pushed back on the lack of peer-reviewed studies in her presentation.
“This committee has always prided itself on openness, transparency and data and evidence. So I am wondering if we will have an actual scientific presentation with peer-reviewed literature, strong evidence to actually discuss this issue, as many statements have been made here today, without support of science or evidence, but merely opinion,” Dr. Jason Goldman, a liaison for the American College of Physicians (ACP), said in the meeting.
A CDC review of evidence on thimerosal was previously published on the agency’s website — showing no safety risks from the ingredient — but was later taken down. A former CDC official posted a copy of the article online.
“A scientifically rigorous CDC report reviewing the safety of thimerosal was posted for public access and then abruptly removed at the direction of the Office of the Secretary. The removal of this document, which contextualized decades of evidence showing no link between thimerosal and neurotoxicity or autism, raises serious concerns about transparency and the integrity of the decision-making process,” Sean O’Leary, chair of the American Academy of Pediatrics’ Committee on Infectious Diseases, said in a statement to ABC News.
Doctors have voiced concern that no longer recommending thimerosal in some flu shots could lead to less people getting vaccinated and fuel further distrust of vaccines.
“Any decrease in the number of flu vaccines available will likely result in fewer people being vaccinated and subsequently more hospitalizations and deaths. Its removal could also signal to the general public unwarranted safety concerns,” O’Leary said.
Another heated exchange in the meeting came during the discussion of flu vaccines when ACIP member Dr. Robert Malone described the 250 flu deaths among children during the most recent flu season as a “modest number.”
“The 250 pediatric deaths, which is, let’s acknowledge, is a modest number fortunately,” Malone said.
This past season saw the highest number of flu deaths among children for a non-pandemic season, and the highest number seen since the 2009 H1N1 global flu pandemic, CDC data shows.
Malone received immediate push back during the meeting. Goldman from ACP said the number of deaths “is not a small number, especially if it’s your own child dying from the vaccine preventable illness.”
(Texas) — Central Texas is continuing to recover from one of the deadliest floods in the state’s history, which killed more than 120 people, many of whom were children.
While there is an economic toll from floods due to the damage it causes to property, commerce and transportation, there is a risk to public health as well.
Although rainwater is not harmful, flooding increases the risk of injury, illness and death. Heavy rainfall can cause waterways to overflow and overwhelm sewer and septic systems, environmental health experts told ABC News.
Floodwaters can be contaminated with debris, as well as high levels of bacteria, chemicals, waste and other pollutants, which can cause prolonged health risks, the experts said.
Floodwaters can be “filled with lots of different pathogens that can get in from having lots of backed-up sewage, septic tanks that overflow,” Natalie Exum, an assistant professor in the department of environmental health and engineering at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, told ABC News.
“If you’re in more rural, farm-based areas, there’s just lots of fecal material from farm animals outside that can kind of wash into your home,” she said. “So, it really serves as this potential stew of ways that these bacteria can get you.”
Contaminated floodwaters can cause more benign conditions like skin irritations. More serious conditions like infection can also occur if contaminated water enters small cuts or open wounds in the skin, and can progress to sepsis if left untreated.
If contaminated floodwater is swallowed, or pollutes drinking water, this can lead to gastrointestinal illnesses such as stomach pain, diarrhea, nausea and vomiting.
A 2023 study from researchers at the Yale School of Public Health found that severe flooding was linked to an increased diarrhea risk among children.
There are long-term health impacts as well due to mold that can grow in houses and on surfaces, according to Kai Chen, an associate professor of epidemiology in the department of environmental health sciences at the Yale School of Public Health and faculty director of the Yale Center on Climate Change and Health.
“Even months after the flood, what we see is there’s increased risk for chronic illnesses such as heart disease, and there can be also, in fact, respiratory illnesses like pulmonary disorders,” he told ABC News. “So, if you’re breathing in this moldy air, it can induce these chronic conditions, respiratory illnesses.”
Chen said an analysis conducted with colleagues in 2023 found that, in the U.S., even as long as 12 months after the floods, there can be increased mortality from chronic conditions like cardiovascular disease and respiratory illnesses.
Although it’s best to avoid floodwater when possible, Chen recommends taking precautions if you need to be near or in floodwater.
“Wash your hands with soap and make sure you have safe drinking water,” he said. “Even though you think, ‘I just live nearby the flood. The flood water doesn’t come into our neighborhood,’ it could also contaminate the groundwater.”
Exum said people can call their county health department if they have a water well that they suspect may have been contaminated during the floods.
Mosquitoes pose another risk as standing floodwater can serve as a breeding ground, which can lead to the harboring of diseases, such as West Nile virus.
Exum said it’s understandable that some people would want to enter their homes to remove the standing water and salvage their property, but added that it’s important to take precautions.
“If you do want to get into your home … put on some big rubber boots, put on some eye protection, put on gloves, wear long pants, and just recognize that even though it may look like it’s just water, it actually could be a pretty meaningful risk for you,” she said.
