Leading Pediatric Group Splits with CDC Over Vaccine Recommendations

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KQED

News Commentary, News, Politics

4.2 • 727 Ratings

🗓️ 21 August 2025

⏱️ 55 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

The American Academy of Pediatrics is breaking with the CDC for the first time in decades by continuing to recommend Covid-19 shots for infants and young children. By contrast the CDC, under Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., is no longer recommending the vaccine for healthy kids. Infectious disease expert Michael Osterholm joins us to help make sense of the conflicting messages. We’ll also get his thoughts on federal cuts to vaccine research funding, and our readiness for future pandemics. Guests: Dr. Michael Osterholm, epidemiologist; director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy, University of Minnesota Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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0:46.3	From KQED in San Francisco, I'm Mina Kim. Coming up on forum, the American Academy of Pediatrics is breaking with the Centers for Disease
1:11.4	Control and Prevention by continuing to recommend COVID-19 shots for infants and young children.
1:17.5	By contrast, the CDC, under Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy is no longer
1:22.9	recommending the vaccine for healthy kids.
1:26.0	Infectious disease expert Michael Osterholm joins us to help make sense
1:29.3	of the conflicting messages. We'll also get his thoughts on federal funding cuts to MRNA vaccine
1:34.5	research, which was vital to the development of the COVID vaccine, and his thoughts on our
1:39.4	readiness for future pandemics. Join us. Welcome to Forum. I'm Mina Kim. When the leading pediatricians
1:52.4	Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics broke with the CDC this week in recommending
1:57.7	the COVID vaccine for children. It said all infants and young toddlers
2:02.1	should get the COVID vaccine, that two to 18-year-olds should get it if they're at or live
2:06.5	with people at high risk, though the vaccine should still be available regardless. The CDC, on the other
2:12.3	hand, has said getting the vaccine, if you're six months to 17 years old, should be based on, quote, shared clinical
2:18.4	decision-making. Dr. Michael Osterholm is here to provide context for the AAP's rare break from the federal
2:24.7	agency it normally aligns with, as well as developments more broadly at the Department of Health
2:30.2	and Human Services. He's director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy
	...

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