WASHINGTON, DC (Michigan News Source) – On August 5, 2025, Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced he was cancelling 22 federally funded mRNA vaccine projects worth nearly half a billion dollars. The list of affected efforts and the restructuring of other collaborations include big-name players like Pfizer and Moderna.

The HHS says this move comes after a “comprehensive review of mRNA-related investments initiated during the COVID-19 public health emergency” with Kennedy saying, “We’re shifting that funding toward safer, broader vaccine platforms that remain effective even as viruses mutate.” He added that “no new mRNA-based projects will be initiated.”

MORE NEWS: Lions’ Norris Back in Detroit after Injury

Kennedy goes on to say in his statement, “Let me be absolutely clear: HHS supports safe, effective vaccines for every American who wants them. That’s why we’re moving beyond the limitations of mRNA and investing in better solutions.”

Why Kennedy is pulling the plug.

Kennedy’s reasoning? He argues that mRNA technology doesn’t work for respiratory viruses like COVID-19 and the flu, and that it poses more risks than benefits. This comes despite health agencies around the world – backed by independent research – crediting mRNA vaccines with saving millions of lives during the pandemic. Unsurprisingly, the move is drawing heavy criticism from many, including physicians, politicians, social media influencers, and anyone with a social media platform or a microphone.

From mRNA pioneer to vaccine skeptic.

Dr. Robert Malone, a physician and biochemist who was involved in some of the early foundational work on mRNA technology in the late 1980s and early 1990s, is now one of Kennedy’s new members to a key federal vaccine advisory panel, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) which provides guidance to the CDC. This appointment was made after eight previous members of the group were dismissed by Kennedy.

Malone said recently on his Substack Malone News, “We, the MAHA (Make America Healthy Again) base, need to encourage President Trump – on all social channels – to stand up to the Big Pharma lobby. We know the mRNA vaccines don’t work. We know they cause cancer. This is about doing the right thing. Choosing health over money.”

MORE NEWS: Court Docs: Bus Driver Had THC in System in Crash That Hurt 4 Students

Malone reiterated what he said Bannon’s War Room and in an op-ed with Peter Navarro many years ago: “These products are not working, they never provided durable, long lasting adaptive immune responses, and their use probably prolonged the COVID crisis by driving the repeated development of SARS-CoV-2 viral escape mutants.”

How mRNA and other vaccines work.

COVID-19 mRNA vaccines work by giving the body a set of genetic instructions to help it recognize the virus. Messenger RNA (mRNA) carries the code that tells cells to make a harmless fragment of the virus – specifically, the spike protein found on its surface. This fragile genetic code is wrapped in a protective lipid shell, a microscopic fat bubble that helps it enter cells.

Traditional vaccines, on the other hand, work by introducing the immune system to a weakened, inactivated, or partial version of a virus or bacteria. This “practice run” lets the body safely learn to recognize the invader without causing the actual disease. Once exposed, the immune system creates antibodies and memory cells, so if the real pathogen shows up later, the body can respond quickly and effectively.

The COVID-19 vaccine was the first mRNA shot to be rolled out on a massive scale – making the world, in a sense, the test lab. Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna’s versions were the first to receive full emergency authorization and they went global, marking the technology’s grand debut on the world stage.

How effective are the COVID-19 mRNA vaccines?

According to WHO, COVID-19 has claimed at least 7 million lives worldwide, including more than 1.2 million in the United States – hardly a ringing endorsement for the vaccine’s ability to protect the vulnerable or those around them. Add to that the ongoing complaints and cases of long COVID – whether from the virus itself or possibly the vaccines – and it’s worth remembering that the shots were never actually intended to stop infection or transmission in the first place.

When mRNA vaccines like Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna were first rolled out, the main goal was to prevent severe illness, hospitalizations, and deaths. While there was early optimism they might also sharply reduce infection and transmission, that benefit was never guaranteed – and became less likely as the virus evolved.

The research that’s fueling Kennedy’s fire.

Kennedy’s critics are saying that the mRNA funding cuts are a setback for public health, a bad day for science and a blow to our national security and that it risks undermining the U.S.’s ability to combat future pandemics.

However, there is a growing library of peer-reviewed research, catalogued by independent scientists and published in July, that is raising safety questions about the technology.

This includes a 2025 compilation by researchers including Dr. Martin Wucher, Dr. Byram Bridle, and Dr. Steven Hatfill that Kennedy points to in his announcement that pulls together more than 370 papers showing the COVID-19 spike protein – produced by the vaccines themselves – can be harmful on its own. The data cites studies indicating that:

  • mRNA and spike proteins can travel beyond the injection site and persist in the body longer than public health agencies originally claimed.
  • Lipid nanoparticles (the fat bubbles that deliver the mRNA) can be inflammatory and, in rare cases, trigger severe allergic reactions.
  • Immune imprinting from the original Wuhan spike may shape – and potentially weaken – the body’s response to new variants.

These papers were published in recognized journals and were used by Kennedy and others in the Trump Administration to look at whether the mRNA’s risk profile justifies continued heavy federal investment compared to other vaccine platforms.

From warp speed to reverse.

In 2020, “Operation Warp Speed” made “mRNA” a household term. The technology’s speed and adaptability were the selling points – update the code, make a new shot, and tackle the next variant or virus. Now, Kennedy says he wants to focus on “safer, broader” approaches like whole-virus vaccines.

The bottom line.

Over 13.8 billion COVID-19 vaccine doses have been administered worldwide as of 2024 according to WHO, with everyone, including Americans, trusting their government’s assurances about the vaccines. Now, instead of blindly doubling down on a technology with unresolved questions, Kennedy is being pragmatic, yanking the funding and redirecting it toward vaccine approaches he believes are safer and more versatile. Supporters call it a long-overdue course correction – a chance to invest in platforms that might protect against a wider range of pathogens without the same lingering concerns.

Whether history remembers this as a political gamble or a public health win will depend on what comes next. But for now, Kennedy’s decision sends a clear signal: when in doubt, hit the brakes, check under the hood, and make sure the next ride is worth taking.