NOTE FROM THE EDITOR

The shift has been sudden and significant.

Since the confirmation of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as HHS Secretary in February, all members of a panel trusted to guide U.S. vaccine policy were ousted and replaced with a committee now at odds with many major medical groups. Several CDC leaders have resigned or been fired. Use of the messenger RNA vaccines that helped end the COVID-19 pandemic has been narrowed. Broader changes to the childhood vaccine schedule have been discussed, too. 

The speedy overhaul has occurred amid a backdrop of declining vaccination rates, and as U.S. measles cases have hit their highest levels since the disease was declared eliminated a quarter century ago. Caught in the middle are vaccine makers now trying to navigate a new era of regulatory uncertainty. 

BioPharma Dive will continue tracking the changes to U.S. vaccine policy in the months ahead. But for now, we think it’s a good time to reflect on what’s happened already. Thanks as always for reading BioPharma Dive.