Pediatrics Group Defies Trump Admin With Covid Vaccine Recommendation

(Tom Williams/Juan Karita/AP photos)

The American Academy of Pediatrics has publicly recommended a new Covid-19 shot for children, defying earlier guidance from the federal government.

It’s the first time in three decades that the AAP has deviated from the course set by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“It is going to be somewhat confusing. But our opinion is we need to make the right choices for children to protect them,” Dr. James Campbell, vice chair of the AAP infectious diseases committee, told the Associated Press.

The AAP recommends vaccines for kids between 6 months and 2 years old as they are at high risk for severe illness, Dr. Campbell told the AP.

HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had previously shied away from Covid vaccines for healthy children, but said they are free to do so after consulting a doctor.

The AAP guidelines came two months after Kennedy, a known vaccine skeptic, gutted the federal vaccine board.

His actions sparked concern from Dr. Jerome Adams, President Donald Trump’s former surgeon general, who said he was “deeply concerned” by Kennedy’s “unprecedented decision.”

“I urge Secretary Kennedy to ensure that any new appointees are qualified scientists committed to public health and to prioritize collaboration with the scientific community to strengthen, not dismantle, this vital process,” Dr. Adams added. “Our children and communities deserve policies grounded in science, not politics and populism.”

The American Medical Association has also torn apart Kennedy’s move, saying it undermines “trust and upends a transparent process that has saved countless lives.”

Kennedy has long been under intense scrutiny for linking vaccines to autism and other unfounded claims, including that chemicals in drinking water are turning kids transgender and that Covid may have been specifically engineered to spare “Jews and Chinese” people.