The Right’s COVID Betrayal: Putting Everyone At Risk

A Dangerous Rollback: How the U.S. is Forcing Vaccine Denial on Everyone

Introduction

On May 27, 2025, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, led by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., stunned the scientific community by rolling back COVID-19 vaccine recommendations for healthy children, pregnant women, and nearly everyone under 65. The new policy, announced without input from the CDC’s own vaccine advisory committee, effectively removes access to a life-saving tool for millions of Americans.

This decision doesn’t just limit choice for those who trust science—it punishes them. While anti-vaxxers have always refused the shots, this rollback forces those who want protection to go without. The consequences? A higher risk of serious illness and death, the erasure of personal autonomy, and a clear sign that misinformation and politics are winning out over science.

Key Takeaways

✅ Vaccines save lives: Data from the CDC and multiple studies confirm that COVID-19 vaccines dramatically reduced hospitalizations and deaths.

✅ New policy bans vaccines for healthy adults under 65—not just kids and pregnant women.

✅ The CDC’s advisory committee was bypassed, and this decision is out of step with global health recommendations, including from the WHO.

✅ Right-wing misinformation and politics played a major role—conservative figures opposed vaccines, and several prominent anti-vaccine hosts died from COVID-19 themselves.

✅ Pro-science Americans will now pay the price: This isn’t about “choice” anymore—it’s about removing protection for those who believe in science.

What’s Changed and Who’s Behind It?

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), under Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., has announced a seismic shift in COVID-19 vaccine recommendations. Effective immediately, the CDC will no longer recommend vaccines for healthy children, pregnant women, or healthy adults under 65. Instead, only those 65 and older or with serious underlying health conditions will have access to approved COVID-19 vaccines in the United States.

🟢 Key Changes:

• 🚫 Healthy children and pregnant women excluded from vaccine recommendations.

• 🚫 Healthy adults under 65 also excluded, unless they have high-risk conditions.

• 🟢 Only high-risk groups and those 65+ remain eligible for approved vaccines.

This stunning reversal was not made in consultation with the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), which traditionally shapes vaccine policy in the U.S. ACIP usually meets publicly, reviews data from clinical trials, and issues recommendations after weighing benefits and risks for different age groups. Bypassing this process breaks with decades of precedent and undermines trust in the scientific rigor of vaccine policy (source).

🟢 Who’s Behind It?

• 🔴 Robert F. Kennedy Jr.: Long-time vaccine skeptic and HHS Secretary.

• 🔴 Dr. Marty Makary: Known for downplaying COVID risks in past op-eds.

• 🔴 Dr. Jay Bhattacharya: A co-author of the Great Barrington Declaration, which opposed COVID lockdowns and downplayed the threat to healthy populations.

The FDA has also changed the regulatory framework: going forward, any company wanting to offer COVID-19 vaccines to healthy adults under 65 must fund and conduct new randomized controlled trials (source). Given the cost and time required for such trials, this effectively removes COVID-19 vaccines from the market for most healthy people in the U.S.

The Official Rationale—And Why It Doesn’t Hold Up

So, what’s the official reason for this stunning policy change? According to Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., FDA Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary, and NIH Director Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, the decision is based on a “lack of clinical data” supporting repeat booster shots in healthy children, pregnant women, and adults under 65. They claim that new randomized controlled trials are needed to prove these vaccines work for these groups.

🔴 But here’s the problem:

• This narrative ignores a mountain of real-world data showing that COVID-19 vaccines dramatically reduce hospitalizations and deaths across all age groups.

• Multiple studies—including from the CDC, KFF, and peer-reviewed journals—found that vaccinated people were far less likely to die or suffer severe disease, regardless of age or health status (CDC data summary).

• The idea that vaccines are unproven for healthy people is a political talking point, not a scientific fact.

🟢 What the Real-World Data Shows:

• ✅ Vaccines slashed COVID death rates: In 2021 and 2022, unvaccinated adults were at least 10 times more likely to die from COVID-19 compared to those who had received at least one vaccine dose.

• ✅ This reduction in risk held up even as new variants like Delta and Omicron emerged (CDC data).

• ✅ Countries with higher vaccine uptake consistently avoided hospital surges and saw fewer deaths—a clear testament to vaccine effectiveness.

🟢 Global Recommendations—The WHO’s Stance:

• The World Health Organization (WHO) continues to recommend COVID vaccines for pregnant women, children, and adults of all ages (WHO COVID-19 vaccine guidance).

• The U.S. decision defies this global consensus and undermines years of collaborative public health work.

🚫 Bottom Line:
The new policy is not based on science or rigorous review—it’s based on a manufactured “lack of data” argument that ignores years of real-world evidence. Instead of building on progress, it’s turning back the clock and leaving Americans without a proven tool to protect themselves.

The Science is Clear—Vaccines Save Lives

Despite the claims of HHS leaders, there’s overwhelming scientific consensus that COVID-19 vaccines are safe, effective, and essential—even for healthy people under 65. Far from being an unproven tool, these vaccines have already saved millions of lives worldwide.

🟢 Real-World Evidence

• 🌍 In 2021 and 2022, CDC data showed that unvaccinated adults were 10-20 times more likely to die from COVID-19 than those who had at least one dose (CDC source).

• 🌍 This difference held true across age groups—including healthy adults in their 20s, 30s, 40s, and beyond.

• 🌍 Hospitalizations and ICU admissions also dropped sharply in vaccinated groups, according to studies in the U.S. and globally.

🟢 Vaccines and Pregnancy

• 💉 The CDC and WHO have long recommended COVID-19 vaccination during pregnancy, citing evidence of lower risk of severe illness for both mother and baby (WHO pregnancy vaccine FAQ).

• 💉 Studies published in JAMA and The New England Journal of Medicine confirmed no increased risk of miscarriage or pregnancy complications from vaccination (NEJM study on pregnancy).

🟢 The Broader Picture

• 🔬 Vaccines don’t always prevent infection, especially with new variants—but they consistently reduce the risk of serious illness and death.

• 🔬 This effect protects hospitals and communities, preventing deadly surges.

✅ Bottom Line:
The claim that “we don’t have enough data” is flat-out false. Decades of vaccine science, bolstered by real-world COVID data, proves that vaccines save lives—even in healthy populations. Removing access to these vaccines endangers millions and ignores the lessons we learned at enormous cost.

The Role of Misinformation and Politics

So how did we get here? This policy reversal didn’t happen in a vacuum—it’s the result of years of misinformation, political games, and media-driven conspiracy theories.

🟢 The Power of Misinformation

• 📺 Right-wing media outlets like Fox News have repeatedly downplayed COVID-19 risks and amplified false claims about vaccine safety.

• 📣 Social media platforms and podcasts turned COVID skepticism into clickbait, prioritizing political agendas over public health.

• 📊 Data from the Kaiser Family Foundation shows that Republican-leaning counties had lower vaccination rates and higher death rates during the height of the pandemic.

🟢 Political Motivations

• 🎤 Conservative figures—often with no scientific background—dismissed vaccine science to cater to their base.

• 🎤 Vaccine hesitancy became a culture war issue, driven by fear-mongering and political identity.

• 🏛️ This decision by HHS—under Robert F. Kennedy Jr.—panders directly to these same misinformation-fueled narratives, ignoring actual science.

Real-World Consequences—The Deaths of Prominent Anti-Vax Hosts

• 💀 Phil Valentine, a Nashville radio host who mocked vaccines, died of COVID-19 after a long hospitalization (CNN report).

• 💀 Marc Bernier, Florida’s self-styled “Mr. Anti-Vax,” also died of COVID-19, never having taken the shots he railed against (NBC News).

• 💀 Dick Farrel, a former Newsmax host, died after calling vaccines a scam—and reportedly urged his friends to get vaccinated when he realized how sick he was (Washington Post).

⚠️ The Lesson:
These tragic deaths highlight the real human cost of vaccine denial. When those who spread misinformation die themselves, it’s a chilling reminder that these aren’t just political talking points—they’re life-or-death decisions.

✅ Bottom Line:
This new policy shift by HHS is not a neutral scientific decision—it’s the culmination of a misinformation campaign that has cost lives and sown division. Now, it’s being codified into federal policy, putting even those who believe in science at risk.

Punishing the Pro-Science Majority

Here’s the cruel irony of the HHS decision: it doesn’t just impact those who’ve bought into misinformation—it punishes those who trust science and want to protect themselves.

🟢 Anti-Vaxxers Never Wanted the Shot

• 🚫 The people who were already rejecting COVID vaccines—often influenced by misinformation—still won’t take them, no matter what the CDC says.

• 🚫 They’ve made it clear: no amount of data or scientific guidance will convince them.

• 🔥 And yet, these same groups are now deciding policy for everyone—not just for themselves.

🟢 Now Everyone Pays the Price

• 👩‍⚕️ Under the new policy, healthy adults under 65 who want to get vaccinated can no longer do so, unless they have high-risk conditions.

• 👶 Parents who want to protect their kids or unborn babies are now told: sorry, you’re on your own.

• 👪 Families who believe in evidence-based health care have no access to the very tool that could save lives in the next surge.

🟢 Not About Choice—About Denial

• 🛑 This isn’t about “personal choice” anymore—it’s about denying access to those who have chosen to trust science.

• 🛑 It’s a betrayal of the core public health principle: provide the best protection for everyone, not just the few.

• 🛑 And it’s a direct blow to health equity, as wealthier Americans might find other ways to get vaccinated, while others are left unprotected.

✅ Bottom Line:
The anti-vaxxers get to stick with their misinformation—but those who believe in science, evidence, and community protection are the ones forced to accept more risk. It’s a policy that puts ideology above lives, and it’s a dangerous road we’re already seeing the consequences of.