In Axing mRNA Contract, Trump Delivers Another Blow to US Biosecurity, Former Officials Say
- The Trump administration discontinued funding totaling $766 million that was allocated for creating mRNA vaccines targeting potential pandemic influenza strains, a move that former health security officials say weakens US biological defense.
- This cancellation followed cuts to research budgets and policy changes that gutted health agencies amid warnings of the bird flu H5N1 as a key pandemic threat.
- MRNA vaccines offer a faster development process by bypassing complex biological methods, yet since March, testing for bird flu has been conducted on just a small number of farmworkers in the U.S.
- HHS communications director Andrew Nixon explained that continuing to fund Moderna’s H5N1 mRNA vaccine was deemed neither scientifically appropriate nor ethically defensible, in light of concerns about potential adverse effects.
- Experts warn these actions worsen pandemic preparedness, risking reliance on others during future outbreaks, with former top vaccine adviser Peter Marks resigning over assaults on scientific truth.
21 Articles
21 Articles
Funding canceled for bird flu vaccine
(CNN, KYMA/KECY) - The Department of Health and Human Services has canceled a contract with Moderna for the development of a bird flu vaccine. The $590 million contract was announced just days before President Donald Trump was sworn in for a second term. The announcement comes as Moderna reported positive data from an early phase trial on this vaccine. It comes as the same technology Moderna used to create its vaccine for COVID-19, which was fou…
End the EUA ⋆ Brownstone Institute
End the EUA by Clayton J. Baker, MD at Brownstone Institute It’s long past time to deal with the core problem that persists from the Covid era: the remaining EUA and the PREP Act. These must be revoked if we are to finally put an end to our long nightmare. The mRNA injections that were produced ostensibly to end the Covid crisis were released under Emergency Use Authorization under the PREP Act (Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness Act o…
New MRNA Vaccine is More Effective, Less Costly to Develop: Study
Get latest articles and stories on Health at LatestLY. A new type of mRNA vaccine is more scalable and adaptable to continuously evolving viruses such as SARS-CoV-2 and H5N1, according to a study by researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of Public Health and the Pennsylvania State University. Health News | New MRNA Vaccine is More Effective, Less Costly to Develop: Study.
'Hunger games': Trump admin delivers another 'baffling' blow to US biosecurity
The Trump administration’s cancellation of $766 million in contracts to develop mRNA vaccines against potential pandemic flu viruses is the latest blow to national defense, former health security officials said. They warned that the U.S. could be at the mercy of other countries in the next pandemic. “The administration’s actions are gutting our deterrence from biological threats,” said Beth Cameron, a senior adviser to the Brown University Pande…

In axing mRNA contract, Trump delivers another blow to US biosecurity, former officials say
The Trump administration's cancellation of $766 million in contracts to develop mRNA vaccines against potential pandemic flu viruses is the latest blow to national defense, former health security officials said.
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