Axios - Blue states are quickly moving to defy Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s vaccine restrictions, increasing the likelihood of a patchwork of conflicting policies similar to the divides over abortion and gender-affirming care.
The resulting standoff could confuse the public on potentially life-and-death decisions. And a state-by-state approach could be inadequate in a major crisis....
The fractures show that Democratic leaders in California, Massachusetts and other states see political gain in picking fights with Kennedy.
- And it could be part of a broader push toward what some analysts are calling "soft secession," in which states create rival systems to limit the power of the Trump administration.
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey announced yesterday that her state will require health insurers to cover vaccines recommended by its health department and not rely only on CDC recommendations.
- New Mexico's health department last week issued a public health order to ensure that all residents can obtain COVID-19 vaccines, in response to guidelines Kennedy announced that restrict them to high-risk patients.
Since then, Massachusetts, Colorado and Pennsylvania have all cleared barriers that would have prevented pharmacies in the state from providing broad access to COVID-19 vaccines this fall.
- California, Oregon and Washington on Wednesday also unveiled a collaborative effort to issue their own evidence-based immunization recommendations.
- "The events of last week, with the resignations of senior experts and the termination of the CDC director, shows that ... [the CDC] is very difficult to trust at the moment," said Sameer Vohra, director of public health in Illinois, where officials have said they'll consider outside sources as well as the CDC for vaccine guidance... MORE
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