Aug. 27 (UPI) — The federal government signed-off on the latest round of COVID-19 vaccines, but new limits were set on which Americans can get them after U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. fulfilled many of his promises to reshape U.S. vaccine policy.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday ended its authorization for the broad use of COVID-19 shots, clearing them only for patients at higher risk of severe illness, and those age 65 and older — or younger adults with at least one underlying health condition who would qualify.
“The emergency use authorizations for Covid vaccines, once used to justify broad mandates on the general public during the Biden administration, are now rescinded,” Kennedy stated early Wednesday afternoon in a post on X.
Kennedy said the American people “demanded science, safety and common sense,” and he claimed this new framework “delivers all three.”
But this new action is likely to complicate access, observers say, and prompts questions on insurance plan coverage.
According to Kennedy, vaccine shots still will be available for patients but only after they consult with a doctor.
On Wednesday, both Moderna and Pfizer confirmed its vaccines were approved for use in adults age 65 and older and those age 5 through 64 with at least one underlying condition.
However, it remains to be seen how easily it can be obtained for patients without higher risk health factors.
Previous U.S. vaccine policy suggested an annual COVID-19 shot for people age 6 months and older.
The American Academy of Pediatrics, the nation’s leading pediatrics association, recently recommended children as young as 6 months old be inoculated against COVID-19 in a departure with Trump administration guidelines.
The COVID-19 vaccine shots must be voted on by a panel of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Earlier this year Kennedy, a known skeptic of long-used and effective vaccines, gutted the CDC panel and named widely-known vaccine critics to sit in place.
On Wednesday the chief of America’s Frontline Doctors, a right-wing group known to spread false and unsubstantiated claims, cheered Kennedy’s actions on the U.S. coronavirus vaccine policy switch.
“Mandates are dead. Freedom wins,” Dr. Simone Gold, AFD’s president, said on social media.
However, a noted television medical analyst offered advice to those still on the fence on getting another COVID-19 shot.
“If you want to know if you or members of your family should get vaccinated, my recommendation is to solicit advice from your doctor, not the federal government,” Dr. Jonathan Reiner, a professor at the D.C.-based George Washington School of Medicine & Health Sciences and its director of Cardiac Catheterization Laboratories, stated on X.