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Yahoo
37 minutes ago
- Health
- Yahoo
RFK Jr will be ‘personally responsible' for children's deaths by halting vaccine alliance funding, experts say
Robert F Kennedy Jr will be 'personally responsible' for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of children after he refused to renew US funding for a global vaccines body, public health experts said. The US health secretary said Wednesday that the United States would halt funding for Gavi, the vaccine alliance that has immunised more than one billion children since 2000, in a statement that has also been criticised for spreading disinformation on vaccine safety. Gavi is a partnership between public bodies and the private sector that works to provide vaccines in many of the world's poorest countries. It has prevented an estimated 18.8 million deaths, and hosts global emergency stockpiles against Ebola, yellow fever, meningitis and cholera. The US has long been one of its major funders, and provided around 13% of its budget. Related: First meeting of new CDC vaccine panel reveals policy chaos sown by RFK Jr Gavi announced after a pledging event on Wednesday that it had secured more than $9bn in donations for the next five years, and would continue to chase the $11.9bn total it required. But in a video played at the event, Kennedy said the US would no longer contribute to the organisation until it had worked to 're-earn the public trust'. He criticised Gavi's actions during the Covid-19 pandemic, suggested it should not recommend Covid-19 vaccines for pregnant women, and said it had 'neglected the key issue of vaccine safety'. Gavi set out a detailed rebuttal to Kennedy's claims, stressing that its 'utmost concern is the health and safety of children'. Atul Gawande, a former senior official at USAID, wrote online: 'This pull out will cost 100s of thousands of children's lives a year – and RFK Jr will be personally responsible.' Gavi's own estimates, reported by the New York Times, suggest the loss of US support may mean 75 million children miss out on routine vaccinations over the next five years and 1.2 million die as a result. The UK government has also been criticised for lowering its funding for Gavi, although its £1.25bn ($1.7bn) pledge still made it Gavi's top donor country. Other major donors include the Gates Foundation, which committed $1.6bn, and the European Union a combined €2 billion ($2.3bn). In his video, Kennedy particularly criticised 'whole cell' DTP vaccines provided by Gavi, which protect against diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis (whooping cough). The US and many richer countries, including the UK, have switched to a newer version that causes fewer short-term reactions but does not remain effective for as long, requiring more boosters. The World Health Organization says both types have 'excellent safety records'. Dr Tom Frieden, president and CEO of Resolve to Save Lives and a former CDC director, said: 'Many countries choose to continue the whole cell vaccine. They may have decided this because their populations have a greater risk of serious illness, they have healthcare systems less able to deal with serious pertussis infections, or may simply have made the opposite decision – more short-term adverse reactions, better protection against pertussis. 'Calling this choice not 'taking vaccine safety seriously' is misinformation, plain and simple.' Seth Berkley, former chief executive of Gavi, said in a post on LinkedIn that Kennedy's claims were 'a mix of misinformation and some disinformation' and 'disingenuous', adding: 'It is irresponsible to provide disinformation from a position of political power.' A major study partly funded by Gavi and published in the Lancet this week found vaccine coverage had stalled or reversed globally, driven by persistent health inequalities and rising levels of misinformation and hesitancy.
Hans India
7 hours ago
- Health
- Hans India
Zero-dose children: India's immunisation coverage surpasses global averages, says Centre
Even as the latest Lancet paper marked India among eight countries with a high burden of zero-dose children, those who had never received a routine childhood vaccine, the Union government on Saturday said that the country's large population size, and high vaccination coverage rate must be considered when making such comparisons. The government noted that 'India's antigen-wise immunisation coverage surpasses global averages across all antigens'. In other words, the vaccination strategy deployed in India is targeted against antigens, which can trigger an immune response resisting pathogens (like a virus or bacteria). The global study, led by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington, US, showed that in 2023, more than half of the world's 15.7 million unvaccinated children were living in just eight countries. These were primarily in sub-Saharan Africa (53 per cent) and South Asia (13 per cent): Nigeria, India, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Somalia, Sudan, Indonesia, and Brazil. The government stated that with continued, sustained efforts and intensified implementation of vaccination drives and campaigns across the country, the percentage of zero-dose children in India has actually declined to 0.06 per cent in 2024 from 0.11 per cent in 2023. The numbers, which positioned India as a global exemplar in child health, have also been acknowledged by the UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation in its 2024 report, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said. Further, citing the WUNEIC report 2023, the Ministry explained that the national coverage for Diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis (DTP) -- DTP1 and DTP3 -- ranks among the highest compared to other countries with the largest number of zero-dose children. According to WUENIC 2023, India, with a high population size and socio-geographical diversity, National DTP-1 (Penta-1) has a coverage of 93 per cent, which is 2.47 crore out of 2.65 crore infants have been vaccinated, even though during the equivalent period, which is significantly higher than Nigeria's 70 per cent. There is a commensurate decrease in dropout percentage from DTP-1 to DTP-3, from 7 per cent in 2013 to 2 per cent in 2023, and an increase in coverage of Measles from 83 per cent in 2013 to 93 per cent in 2023. The comparative results of countries on zero dose children as a percentage of the total population shows that Yemen (1.68 per cent), Sudan (1.45 per cent), Angola (1.1 per cent), Afghanistan (1.1 per cent), Nigeria (0.98 per cent), DR Congo (0.82 per cent), Ethiopia (0.72 per cent), Indonesia (0.23 per cent), Pakistan (0.16 per cent) have far more zero dose children as a percentage of their population compared to India's 0.11 per cent during 2023 as per the last Wuneic report released. Thus, 'any comparison of India with any other countries with high burden zero dose children needs to take into consideration India's large population size and high vaccination coverage rate,' the Ministry said. 'Therefore, any interpretation or analysis based on isolated factors does not lend credence to the country's progress on its immunisation programme,' it added. The Ministry said that India's unwavering commitment to immunisation is evident in its elimination of polio in 2014 and maternal and neonatal tetanus in 2015, and the roll-out of the measles-rubella campaign in 2025.
The Hindu
2 days ago
- Health
- The Hindu
Vaccinating India: on zero-dose children
On the bright side, vaccine coverage globally, between 1980 and 2023, doubled for six diseases including measles, polio and tuberculosis. Also, at 75% globally, there has been a sharp fall in the number of zero-dose children — those who have not received the first dose of the diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis (DTP) vaccine — during the same time period. The number of zero-dose children is a crucial performance marker and an indicator of vaccination coverage inequities. Despite increased immunisation coverage over the decades, in 2023, at 1.44 million, India, according to The Lancet, still had the second largest number of zero-dose children, and is among the eight countries with over 50% of the nearly 16 million zero-dose children globally. Most of the zero-dose children globally are in countries that are conflict-affected or with limited resources for vaccination programmes — India has neither of the two problems. However, about 23 million babies were born in 2023 in India, the highest in the world; in 2024, China, which has the second highest number of newborns globally, reported just 9.5 million newborns. Though the number of zero-dose children is staggering, when seen in the context of the number of newborns in 2023, the percentage of zero-dose children in India is 6.2%. A study in 2021 found that India had sharply reduced the percentage of zero-dose children, from 33.4% in 1992 to 10.1% in 2016. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of zero-dose children was 1.4 million in 2019 but this swelled to 2.7 million in 2021 and then dropped to 1.1 million in 2022 before increasing to 1.44 million in 2023. As in the 2021 study, a large percentage of zero-dose children are in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Gujarat. There is also a relatively high proportion of them in Meghalaya, Nagaland, Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh. Over the years, the difference in zero-dose children based on gender, caste, and rural-urban status has reduced substantially. However, prevalence remains high among the poor, mothers with low education, Scheduled Tribes and Muslims. Focus is needed to immunise children in hard-to-reach tribal areas, urban slums where there is a huge migrant population, and in reducing vaccine hesitancy among Muslim households with newborn children. India has much work to do to meet WHO's Immunization Agenda 2030 (IA2030) — halving zero-dose children relative to 2019. With the number of zero-dose children in 2023 (1.44 million) only about nearly reaching the 2019 level of 1.4 million, India needs greater and sustained efforts to halve this number in the next five years.
Euronews
2 days ago
- Health
- Euronews
Europe leads global vaccine effort as US pulls back
At a high-level pledging event in Brussels on Thursday, the GAVI Vaccine Alliance rallied international donors to fund its next five-year programme. So far, GAVI has secured over €7.7 billion – still short of its overall target, though more pledges are expected in the coming weeks. "What's at stake is the lives of millions and millions of children. And I think there is nothing more important in the world than the lives of millions of children," GAVI Chairman José Manuel Barroso told Euronews in an interview. 'It makes a difference if they get immunisation, if they get vaccines or not. Because if they don't get them, they will die from perfectly preventable diseases," he added. GAVI, launched in 2000, is a global health partnership aimed at improving vaccine access in the world's poorest countries. Since its inception, the alliance has helped vaccinate over one billion children and is estimated to have saved 19 million lives. Now, it aims to reach 500 million more by 2030. Supporters say vaccine investments offer a strong return – up to $54 for every dollar spent – through reduced healthcare costs and increased economic productivity. Europe Leads the Charge European nations were among the most prominent backers at the Brussels event. Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez pledged €130 million, 30% more than the country's previous commitment. 'Spain is ready to take a step forward when others are backing down,' he said. The European Commission also reaffirmed its support with a €360 million pledge, bringing the total 'Team Europe' commitment — combining EU institutions and member states — to more than €2 billion. Commission President Ursula von der Leyen welcomed GAVI and UNICEF's commitment to procure up to 20% of vaccines in their programmes from African producers. 'Together we can ensure that vaccines are not only available to Africa, but increasingly made in Africa,' she said at the event, mentioning that Europe is also the largest contributor to the Africa vaccine manufacturing accelerator. The United Kingdom emerged as the single largest donor, committing £1.25 billion. 'Where others are stepping back, we in the United Kingdom are stepping up,' said UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy. 'This will help immunise over 60 million children, saving an estimated 1.25 million lives.' United States pulls out In a stark contrast to past years, the United States — historically a major donor to GAVI — announced it would no longer provide funding, as part of a broader reduction in international aid under President Donald Trump's administration. 'There is much I admire about GAVI,' said US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in a video message. 'Unfortunately, in its zeal to promote universal vaccination, it has neglected the key issue of vaccine safety.' Kennedy, a known vaccine sceptic, specifically raised concerns about the DTP vaccine (diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis), a widely used childhood immunisation. GAVI responded by reaffirming its "full confidence" in the DTP vaccine, citing decades of rigorous safety monitoring. Barroso, in a separate interview prior to Kennedy's statement, maintained an optimistic tone about future collaboration with the US administration. However, he also denounced vaccine disinformation campaigns fuelled by conspiracy theories and social media. 'People, sometimes, like to accept these kinds of fantasies,' he said. As Barroso concluded, the global data on vaccination impact is indisputable: countries with sustained immunisation programmes have seen drastically lower child mortality rates. Preventable diseases like polio, once widespread, have nearly disappeared in these regions. "Vaccines save lives and that's hard evidence," he said.
Saudi Gazette
2 days ago
- Health
- Saudi Gazette
US halts funding to global group that provides vaccines to low-income countries
WASHINGTON — The United States will halt funding for a global organisation that provides vaccines to millions of children in lower-income countries, which comes after the most senior US health official said the group has 'ignored the science' on safety issues. US health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr, a longtime vaccine sceptic and activist, said the country will not deliver on a $1.58 billion (€1.39 billion) pledge made by the previous Biden administration until GAVI – which procures and distributes jabs around the world – changes its approach to vaccine safety research and assessment. 'There is much that I admire about GAVI,' Kennedy said in video remarks. 'Unfortunately, in its zeal to promote universal vaccination, it has neglected the key issue of vaccine safety'. He raised concerns about the safety of a vaccine used to protect infants against diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis, also known as whooping cough (DTP), which is a routine childhood immunization. Kennedy cited a 2017 study from Danish researchers that found infants who received the type of DTP vaccine offered by GAVI were 10 times more likely to die from any cause than unvaccinated babies in their first six months of life – though other experts have since identified flaws in those findings. GAVI hit back at some of Kennedy's comments, saying it had 'full confidence' in the DTP said it offers the jab in lower-income countries because they have a much higher disease burden and are less well-equipped to offer regular booster doses than wealthy countries, which commonly use another version of the DTP vaccine that offers less long-lasting vaccine group had aimed to raise $9 billion (€7.9 billion) to fund its work over the next five years from international donors as part of its summit in Brussels this week, but reportedly fell short of that an interview with Euronews ahead of the event – and Kennedy's announcement – GAVI chair and former European Commission President José Manuel Barroso had struck a more optimistic tone about the group's partnership with the US.'We are working constructively with this administration,' Barroso told he is also toeing a difficult line, navigating US leadership that has embraced vaccine conspiracy theories and slashed funding for global health broadly, Barroso said 'there are campaigns of disinformation' related to vaccines, particularly on social media.'What we have to do is to work with science and to give the facts,' he said. — Euronews
