Trump officials to link COVID shots to child deaths, alarming career scientists

Trump health officials plan to link coronavirus vaccines to the deaths of 25 children as they consider limiting which Americans should get the shots, according to four people familiar with the situation who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe confidential information.

The findings appear to be based on information submitted to the federal Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System, which contains unverified reports of side effects or bad experiences with vaccines submitted by anyone, including patients, doctors, pharmacists or even someone who sees a report on social media. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention emphasizes that the database is not designed to assess whether a shot caused a death, a conclusion that requires thorough investigations by scientists and public health professionals.

Trump health officials plan to include the pediatric deaths claim in a presentation next week to an influential panel of advisers to the CDC that is considering new coronavirus vaccine recommendations, which affect access to the shots and whether they’re free.

The plan has alarmed some career scientists who say coronavirus vaccines have been extensively studied, including in children, and that dangers of the virus itself are being underplayed. While Trump health officials are investigating deaths due to vaccines, CDC staff in June presented data to the same vaccine committee showing that at least 25 children died who had COVID-associated hospitalizations since July 2023. That number, the staff said, was likely an undercount, and of the 16 old enough for vaccination, none was up-to-date on vaccines.

Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Marty Makary confirmed on CNN last week that officials were investigating reports of possible child deaths from the vaccine, including reviewing autopsy reports and interviewing families. Such a review could take months, according to health officials, and it is unclear when those investigations began.

The pediatric deaths presentation to the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) is not final, according to one person familiar with the matter, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe ongoing policy discussions. The full methodology for the analysis was not immediately clear.

“FDA and CDC staff routinely analyze VAERS and other safety monitoring data, and those reviews are being shared publicly through the established ACIP process,” HHS spokesperson Andrew Nixon said in an email. “Any recommendations on updated COVID-19 vaccines will be based on gold standard science and deliberated transparently at ACIP next week.”

But limiting access for people ages 65 to 74 has raised concerns about a political backlash, said one federal health official who spoke on the condition of anonymity to share private conversations. According to CDC estimates, nearly 43 percent of people in that age group and 13 percent of children received the 2024-2025 version of the coronavirus vaccine.

Many countries do not recommend annual coronavirus vaccination for healthy children because they rarely die from COVID and most experience mild symptoms. U.S. officials have justified yearly shots based on data showing infants and toddlers faced elevated risk of hospitalization and that significant shares of those who were hospitalized had no underlying conditions. They have also said vaccines offer children protection against long COVID.

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a longtime critic of coronavirus vaccines, in May directed health officials to stop recommending the shots for otherwise healthy children. The CDC later instructed parents to consult a doctor before getting their children coronavirus vaccines. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends annual coronavirus vaccines for all children ages 6 to 23 months and for older children if their parents want them to have protection.

Next week’s vaccine advisory panel’s meeting is critical because the recommendations determine whether insurers must pay for the immunizations, pharmacies can administer them and doctors are willing to offer them. Kennedy purged the membership of the panel earlier this year and appointed his own picks, most of whom have criticized coronavirus vaccination policy. He is considering adding additional critics of COVID shots to the committee.

The previous vaccine panel was already considering a more targeted approach to coronavirus vaccination, recommending the shot for high-risk groups, but allowing others, including children, to get the vaccine if they wanted.

The planned pediatric death presentation included attempts to interview some families, but it’s not clear what other information was used. Some of those same families had been previously interviewed by the CDC officials as part of vaccine safety tracking, according to one person familiar with the matter.

Moderna, one of two manufacturers of mRNA coronavirus vaccines, said research from around the world shows the benefits outweigh the risks. “With more than one billion doses distributed globally, these systems — in the U.S., Australia, Canada and across European national health systems — have not identified any new or undisclosed safety concerns in children or in pregnant women,” the company said in a statement after this article published.

Harleen Marwah, a pediatrician at Mass General Brigham for Children who recently reviewed data on the coronavirus vaccine and its safety and efficacy in children, said new studies since June identified “no new safety concerns.” Marwah conducted the research on behalf of the Vaccine Integrity Project, a new initiative based at the University of Minnesota to provide scientific evidence to inform vaccine recommendations.

The CDC has been monitoring coronavirus vaccine safety data since the first shots rolled out in the United States. Much stricter requirements were put in place for reporting adverse events than for other vaccines because the vaccines were initially fast-tracked under the FDA’s emergency response authority.

Death rates among all ages after mRNA coronavirus vaccination were below those for the general population, according to data presented to the CDC vaccine committee in June.