Public health experts say it may be difficult for many people to get the updated and recently approved COVID-19 vaccine this fall.
Though the Food and Drug Administration approved the vaccines, there are new restrictions on who will be eligible to receive the shot. The FDA is limiting the vaccine to individuals 65 years of age or older and those with high-risk factors.
Health and Human Services Secretary and vaccine skeptic Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said in a social media post Wednesday that the FDA's actions are delivering on his promise of ending COVID vaccine mandates.
The new vaccine restrictions contradict guidance from many public health experts and organizations like the Infectious Diseases Society of America, which claims scientific evidence strongly supports broad vaccination beyond limited populations to prevent the spread of COVID.
"By narrowing its approval, FDA has made a decision that completely contradicts the evidence base, severely undermines trust in science-driven policy and dangerously limits vaccine access, removing millions of Americans’ choice to be protected and increasing the risk of severe outcomes from COVID," the society's president, Tina Tan, said in a statement.
'Confusion is a bad thing'
Cincinnati Health Commissioner Grant Mussman says these contradicting messages are confusing and will likely result in more vaccine skepticism. Additionally, the hurdles put forward by the FDA will result in fewer people going out of their way to get the new COVID vaccine and vaccines in general.
"Confusion about public health priorities is a bad thing," Mussman told WVXU. "We've seen declining immunization rates for other things like measles, which has a pretty high mortality rate."
Marty Makary, who took over as the commissioner of the FDA in April, maintains the agency is not limiting availability and that every adult can still get the vaccine if they choose. Still, other public health experts predict the added step of every adult needing to get the vaccine prescribed by their doctor will cause vaccination rates to rapidly drop.
With all the different messages out there, Mussman says it may be difficult for people to know who to trust. He advises people to talk with their health care providers about the safety of the vaccine and possible risk factors they may have.
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