Gov. Josh Shapiro’s administration is directing Pennsylvanians to professional medical associations for vaccine recommendations, rather than President Donald Trump’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The new state guidance was announced Monday, days after the CDC’s vaccine advisory panel altered its advice for COVID-19 shots and immunizations for measles, mumps, rubella and chickenpox.
The Pennsylvania Department of Health says residents and health officials should look to the American Academy of Pediatrics, American Academy of Family Physicians, and American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists – professional organizations that each have detailed vaccine schedules for adults, children and pregnant women.
Shapiro’s office said the recommendations provide “clear, evidence-based guidance” following what the governor’s team described as “a confusing and chaotic meeting” of the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices.
“Vaccines save lives, protect families, and prevent dangerous diseases from spreading throughout our communities,” Shapiro said in a statement. “Health care decisions should be up to you and your doctor – and my administration will continue to protect Pennsylvanians’ personal freedoms and parental rights.”
ACIP, during a two-day meeting late last week, advised Americans to use “individual decision-making” to determine whether to get the updated coronavirus vaccine, in consultation with their doctors, pharmacists and nurses. Individuals under the age of 65 should consider whether they have any COVID-19 risk factors, ACIP concluded.
The panel voted down a more restrictive proposal that would have required people to obtain a prescription for the shot.
In addition, the committee adopted new guidance that children under three receive a standalone chickenpox (also known as varicella) shot at the same time as the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine, instead of a combined MMRV immunization. A planned decision on whether to delay the Hepatitis B vaccine for newborns was tabled.
“These changes may make it more difficult for some Pennsylvanians to access needed vaccines – and the confusing proceedings threaten to create more misinformation around vaccines,” Shapiro’s team said in a news release.
ACIP-recommended shots are not mandatory, but the guidelines can impact which shots are covered by insurance.
The Pennsylvania Insurance Department “is actively working with health insurers across the Commonwealth to ensure that all previously recommended vaccines continue to be covered, ensuring ACIP’s latest meeting does not result in any additional financial barriers for individuals and families seeking immunizations to protect themselves,” Shapiro’s office said.
AHIP, a trade organization representing insurance companies, has said coverage would remain intact for COVID immunizations through at least the end of next year.
U.S. Health and Human Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a well-known vaccine skeptic, fired all RCIP members over the summer and replaced them with more like-minded panelists.
Diverting residents to major medical associations – and away from the CDC – is part of a broader trend of Pennsylvania and other states with Democratic governors rebelling against Kennedy’s “Make America Healthy Again” agenda.
On Sept. 18, the Pennsylvania Department of Health formally announced that it is collaborating with officials in New Jersey, New York and several other states as part of the Northeast Public Health Collaborative.
Earlier this month, the state’s Board of Pharmacy, at the urging of Shapiro, voted to permit pharmacists to use the AAP, AAFP and ACOG as sources for vaccination authority.
Previously, pharmacists had to follow ACIP recommendations, and the panel had not yet ruled on the updated COVID shot, based on new criteria from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. In response, pharmacies, including CVS, had begin requiring prescriptions for coronavirus immunizations.
