Covid vaccines restricted to high-risk Americans under Trump admin

President Donald Trump’s administration announced on Wednesday that the Food and Drug Administration was restricting COVID-19 vaccines for high-risk Americans and rescinding the emergency use authorizations for the vaccines that were used by President Joe Biden’s administration to “justify” vaccine mandates.

According to The New York Post, the Trump administration’s new COVID-19 vaccine policy requires children and adults under the age of 65 to show evidence of underlying health conditions, such as obesity and asthma, that leave them with a higher risk of the COVID-19 virus. Meanwhile, individuals over the age of 65 will remain eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine without proof of underlying health conditions. 

In a Wednesday post on X, formerly Twitter, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said, “I promised 4 things: 1. to end covid vaccine mandates. 2. to keep vaccines available to people who want them, especially the vulnerable. 3. to demand placebo-controlled trials from companies. 4. to end the emergency.”

“In a series of FDA actions today we accomplished all four goals,” Kennedy added. “The emergency use authorizations for Covid vaccines, once used to justify broad mandates on the general public during the Biden administration, are now rescinded.”

In his post on Wednesday, Kennedy explained that the Food and Drug Administration released new marketing authorizations for “at-risk” individuals, including Moderna for ages six months and older, Pfizer for ages 5 and older, and Novavax for ages 12 and older.

“These vaccines are available for all patients who choose them after consulting with their doctors,” Kennedy stated. “The American people demanded science, safety, and common sense. This framework delivers all three.”

Prior to the Food and Drug Administration’s update regarding eligibility requirements for COVID-19 vaccines, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had recommended that all Americans 6 months and older receive the COVID-19 vaccine, according to Fox News.

The New York Post reported that over 73% of Americans received at least one COVID-19 vaccine by the end of 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic.