The FDA issued updated authorization requiring adults younger than 65 who are otherwise healthy to consult a healthcare provider before receiving the updated COVID-19 vaccines. The requirement is not imposed for annual influenza vaccinations, which remain widely accessible at many sites. The change was promoted by HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and allies and comes amid rising COVID activity and waning immunity from prior vaccinations and infections. Kennedy framed the guidance as maintaining vaccine availability for those who want them while calling for more research. Some public health experts called the provider-consultation requirement a barrier to vaccination access.
"The American people demanded science, safety, and common sense," he wrote. "This framework delivers all three."
"keep vaccines available to people who want them, especially the vulnerable,"
"The nightmare continues," said Dr. Peter Chin-Hong, an infectious disease expert at UC San Francisco. He said that requiring people to speak with a healthcare provider before getting a COVID-19 vaccine is "completely wrong" and a "barrier," and he expects it'll make it harder for those who don't have a regular healthcare provider to get vaccinated.
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