NEW YORK — A coalition of doctors groups and public health organizations sued the U.S. government on Monday over the decision to stop recommending COVID-19 vaccinations for most children and pregnant women.
The American Academy of Pediatrics, American Public Health Association and four other groups — along with an unnamed pregnant doctor who works in a hospital — filed the lawsuit in federal court in Boston.
U.S. health officials, following infectious disease experts’ guidance, previously urged annual COVID-19 shots for all Americans ages 6 months and older. But in late May, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced he was removing COVID-19 shots from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s recommendations for healthy children and pregnant women.
A number of health experts decried the move as confusing and accused Kennedy of disregarding the scientific review process that has been in place for decades — in which experts publicly review current medical evidence and hash out the pros and cons of policy changes.
The new lawsuit repeats those concerns, alleging that Kennedy and other political appointees at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services have flouted federal procedures and systematically attempted to mislead the public.
“This administration is an existential threat to vaccination in America, and those in charge are only just getting started,” said Richard H. Hughes IV, the lead attorney for the plaintiffs. “If left unchecked, Secretary Kennedy will accomplish his goal of ridding the United States of vaccines, which would unleash a wave of preventable harm on our nation’s children.”
HHS officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Also joining the suit are the American College of Physicians, the Infectious Diseases Society of America, the Massachusetts Public Health Association and the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine.
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