NEW YORK, Feb 24 (Reuters) – Two Democratic state attorneys general announced a multistate lawsuit against the Trump administration on Tuesday over recent changes to the federal government’s childhood vaccine schedule, as medical organizations and public health experts warn the changes could lower inoculation rates.
U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has upended longstanding vaccine policies since taking his position.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has issued a new immunization schedule that removed universal recommendations for vaccines against COVID-19, rotavirus, influenza, meningococcal disease, hepatitis A and hepatitis B, stating that parents should consult with healthcare providers under what it calls shared clinical decision-making.
The California and Arizona attorneys general said 14 states and Governor Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania, all Democrats, would file a complaint in a Northern California federal court on Tuesday challenging those changes, according to a press release.
The lawsuit would also challenge Kennedy’s replacement of members serving on the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices. Reuters previously reported that the California AG’s office was preparing the lawsuit.
That CDC panel is set to meet in March, after its previously scheduled session in February was canceled.
The multistate lawsuit would mirror a separate legal action previously filed by the American Academy of Pediatrics and other leading medical organizations that argued the policy overhaul was illegal and not driven by scientific evidence.
An attorney for the U.S. Department of Justice said at a hearing earlier this month that the U.S. health agency was not pursuing an anti-vaccine agenda. A Massachusetts federal judge has not yet decided that case.
Other states participating in the multistate challenge include Connecticut, Michigan, New Jersey and Wisconsin, according to the press release.
(Reporting by Dan LevineEditing by Bill Berkrot)
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