APHA and other leading public health and medical organizations file amended complaint in challenge to ACIP changes under HHS Secretary Kennedy

On Nov. 5, APHA, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Massachusetts Public Health Association and the Infectious Diseases Society of America, the plaintiffs in American Academy of Pediatrics et al. v. Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. et al. filed an amended complaint in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, expanding their plea to request that the current Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices be disbanded and reconstituted under court supervision.

In the amended complaint, the organizations assert that the current ACIP under Kennedy’s leadership has been unlawfully appointed, necessitating that all decisions made by the committee be declared null and void. This action underscores the commitment of APHA and the other organizations to restoring lawful, science-based vaccine policy and safeguarding public health.

The amended complaint also highlights the significant harms caused by Secretary Kennedy’s directive and subsequent decisionmaking by ACIP to change CDC’s immunization schedule for COVID-19 vaccines to shared clinical decisionmaking. The shared clinical decisionmaking designation, which was not accompanied by any additional guidance from CDC for families and clinicians, has led to confusion among doctors, pharmacists, patients and public health professionals at all levels, leading to denial of vaccines, increased stress and uncertainty about eligibility and insurance coverage.

APHA and dozens of public health experts submit comments to ACIP in support of maintaining Hepatitis B vaccination recommendations for children

On Nov. 20, APHA joined 73 public health deans and scholars in submitting comments to the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, highlighting that the overwhelming scientific evidence supports maintaining the current schedule for immunizing children against the hepatitis B virus. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention adopted this schedule in 1991 in response to a landmark recommendation by ACIP to begin HBV vaccination at birth. 

The HBV schedule has virtually eliminated chronic HBV infections in children. Eliminating a universal newborn immunization policy and delaying the initial HBV dose until later in infancy raises significant health risks, and there is no evidence raising efficacy or safety concerns in connection with universal newborn immunization.

The 1991 policy has had a profound impact on both immunization rates and health outcomes. Between 1993 and 2000, the proportion of very young children immunized against HBV rose from 16 percent to 90 percent. Since the 1991 recommendation took effect, the universal HBV birth dose has prevented over 500,000 childhood infections and prevented an estimated 90,100 childhood deaths. Between 1991 and 2019, HBV infection among children and adolescents dropped 99%, preventing tens of thousands of cases of cirrhosis, liver cancer and death. The evidence shows that now the annual rate of infection is extremely low: fewer than 1,000 U.S. children and adolescents become infected, and fewer than 20 infants are infected at birth.

APHA and the public health experts also issued a statement underscoring the importance of maintaining this important recommendation.

APHA endorses legislation to reduce Medicaid enrollment burden

On Nov. 21, Rep. Rick Larsen (WA-02) introduced H.R. 6148, the Patients Over Paperwork Act of 2025. The legislation, endorsed by the American Public Health Association and 11 other organizations, would reverse a harmful change made to Medicaid enrollment under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Previously, Medicaid enrollees were required to recertify their coverage every 12 months. The OBBBA included a change that would require recertification every six months, doubling the paperwork done by the Medicaid program and making it harder for patients to maintain coverage. The Congressional Budget Office estimates this provision will cause 700,000 people nationwide to lose health insurance by 2034 and will cut $63 billion worth of health care from Medicaid. H.R.6148 would reverse this change and reinstitute the 12-month recertification requirement, reducing the paperwork burden and helping people stay enrolled in Medicaid. In a press release on the bill’s introduction, Rep. Larsen said, “Health care should be accessible and affordable for everyone. Most people who lose Medicaid coverage lose it because they forget to fill out a form or check a box, and the BUL (the Big Ugly Bill, or the OBBBA) doubles opportunities for a simple paperwork mistake to cost someone their access to health care.”

Speak up for public health before the end of the year!

The House and Senate are still in session for a few more weeks before the end of the year, so take a moment to be a public health advocate and send a message to your members of Congress. You can use APHA’s action alerts to support strengthened funding for gun violence research — one of the leading preventable causes of death in the nation. You can also call for legislators to defend the public health workforce and oppose efforts by the Trump administration to dismantle CDC and HRSA. Finally, you can urge Congress to pass an appropriations bill that includes strong funding for public health agencies in Fiscal Year 2026.