Vaccine Experts Warn of Potentially Dire Times Ahead

June 26, 2025

Some of the nation’s top experts on vaccinations painted a grim picture of the future of immunizations in Minnesota and the United States, at a June 23 online forum hosted by the MMA.  

Much of the discussion centered around what lies ahead now that HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., has replaced the members of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) with eight of his own people. Six of these people are vowed anti-vaxxers, said panelist Michael T. Osterholm, PhD, MPH, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy (CIDRAP) at the University of Minnesota. (See related story here (link to AMA letter to Kennedy story.)) 

Osterholm was joined on the panel by Gregory A. Poland, MD, infectious disease prevention expert and president of the Atria Academy of Science and Medicine, and Tabitha K. Hanson, DNP, MPH, RN, immunization program clinical consultant at the Minnesota Department of Health. 

“We have an [HHS] secretary that's already said they don't care if they have ACIP or not,” Osterholm said. “They're going to do whatever they want to do.” They are choosing to make decisions based on politics, not science. “In Minnesota, we, like all the other states, are suffering through this, and we're recognizing that right now, more than any time in the last 60 years, our vaccine infrastructure and enterprise is at serious, serious risk.” 

"Myths and disinformation is deadly,” Poland said. “Poor science equals poor public health equals poor medical and even economic outcomes for a state or for a nation.” 

Earlier this year, Osterholm and his associates at CIDRAP created the Vaccine Integrity Project, which is now, in a sense, taking the place of the CDC and ACIP, he said. The project has held a series of focus groups made up of a variety of healthcare individuals involved in vaccines. "We are trying to take it head-on, and I think if we can do that, it surely doesn't eliminate the mis- and disinformation that's coming out, but it offers an alternative authoritative source,” Osterholm said. “And so, that we can, in fact, hopefully make it possible for payers to continue to pay for these vaccines." 

While the panelists painted a negative picture, they did have some suggestions for how physicians can approach the current tenuous environment.  

Hanson suggested that physicians use neutral language when talking to their patients about vaccinations. "Thinking about things that might inspire people to get vaccinated might be different for different people with different political beliefs or cultural beliefs,” she said. “Some examples of that might be focusing more on personal liberty or individual choice, or maybe keeping the economy open might be something that appeals to some people, versus someone who might be interested more in the common good or protecting their families, or protecting their loved ones." 

Poland suggested meeting the patient where they are. When a physician considers getting a vaccine, they will likely say: “’Show me the data.’ Well, patients don't ask that. Rather, they have a series, often of ill-formed ideas or biased information. And so, you need to understand that. You need to understand their cognitive style, and then address your education toward them in that style." 

"We're in a space where people, your patients, may care more about you caring for them than how smart you are, which is a very strange place to be, because you have so much knowledge and information and wisdom and experience to share with them,” Hanson said. “But what they really want to know is if you would vaccinate your own children, or if you would get the vaccine yourself, or why you would choose to vaccinate." 

Hanson said MDH continues to do outreach and partner with specialty societies and community groups to promote vaccinations. "We will continue to partner with professional medical and health-related organizations in Minnesota and nationally to continue to fight for access to vaccines and to provide vaccine recommendations that are based on rigorous scientific review and transparent discussion." 

A recording of the forum, which was moderated by MMA President Edwin Bogonko, MD, MBA, is available here. 

On a related topic, the MMA and other state medical associations signed on to an AMA letter on June 25 to reaffirm their support for vaccination as the best way to protect against the flu, COVID-19, and RSV, and their potentially serious complications. The organizations call on partners—insurers, hospitals, and public health agencies—to ensure these life-saving vaccines remain available to patients without cost sharing.