Health · Public Health & Disease · 1 day ago
US launches effort to study health problems reported after vaccination
US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has launched an effort to study and document health problems reported after vaccination.
It includes a National Institutes of Health clinic for patients who report such problems, opened this week.
The health department also plans to require electronic health records to capture vaccine-related adverse events, while the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention works to update its reporting system.
A proposal would pay doctors for reporting suspected injuries to that system.
Vaccine safety is already monitored after approval, and a federal program has paid compensation for vaccine injuries and deaths since 1988.
The new effort comes as public health experts warn that vaccination rates are falling, including for measles, which has resurged in the United States.
Kennedy’s separate changes to the childhood vaccine schedule face legal challenges, and a federal court has blocked key parts of them.
US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. launched an agency-wide effort to study and document health problems reported after vaccination, according to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
The initiative includes a National Institutes of Health clinic for patients who report health problems after vaccination, a proposal to reimburse doctors for reporting suspected injuries, an update to the CDC reporting system and a requirement to record vaccine-related adverse events in electronic health records.
The American Academy of Pediatrics says childhood vaccines are tested in controlled clinical trials and monitored for safety after approval; health experts cited in the article say there is no evidence that vaccine ingredients cause the harms Kennedy alleges.
A federal vaccine injury compensation program has awarded about US$5 billion in compensation for approximately 12,300 injury and death cases since 1988.
The effort comes as Kennedy faces legal challenges to changes to childhood vaccination recommendations and public health experts express concern about declining immunization rates, including against measles.
- Who
- US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and the Department of Health and Human Services
- What
- An agency-wide initiative to study and document health problems reported after vaccination
- When
- Launched during the week of October 5, 2026; HHS announced it on October 8
- Where
- United States
- Why
- To study and document reported health problems after vaccination; a further rationale is not stated
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and HHS
Health experts and the American Academy of Pediatrics
Vaccine safety
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and HHS
Kennedy has argued that substances in vaccines are dangerous and that American children receive too many vaccines.
Health experts and the American Academy of Pediatrics
Health experts say there is no evidence of the harms Kennedy alleges. The American Academy of Pediatrics says childhood vaccines are tested in controlled clinical trials and monitored after approval.
Vaccine injury reporting
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and HHS
HHS is expanding efforts to study and record reported health problems after vaccination, including through a new clinic and changes to reporting and health-record systems.
Health experts and the American Academy of Pediatrics
The article does not describe an opposing position on the new reporting measures; it says the measures appear to be part of Kennedy's long-running efforts to promote skepticism about vaccines.
No direct quotes in the coverage so far.
The federal vaccine injury compensation program awarded about US$5 billion for approximately 12,300 injury and death cases.
The CDC announced a revised childhood vaccination schedule that removed universal recommendations for several vaccines.
A federal court issued an injunction blocking key parts of the proposed changes, finding that Kennedy and HHS had violated federal law in restructuring the CDC's advisory committee.
An NIH clinic opened to treat and study patients who report health problems after vaccination.
HHS announced the agency-wide effort to study and document health problems reported after vaccination.
- HHS secretary
- Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
- NIH clinic opening
- October 5, 2026
- Vaccine injury compensation since 1988
- About US$5 billion for approximately 12,300 injury and death cases
- Federal vaccine injury table
- Lists 14 compensable injuries associated with 16 types of vaccines
- Court injunction
- Issued in March 2026; blocked key parts of the proposed vaccination schedule changes
Sources
Related news
WHO says cause of Russian lab worker’s death remains unknown
Russia ends checks after Siberian lab worker’s death, but cause remains unknown
About 1,300 to 1,400 people seek care after illness in Tokat
Brazil approves first human tests of vaccine against a major malaria parasite
Drug-resistant Shigella is becoming more common in the U.S
CDC monitors US arrivals from Siberia amid concerns over possible plague
Kenya’s First Ebola Patient Travelled Through DR Congo and Uganda Undetected
Kenyan patient suspected of Ebola tests negative in preliminary results
Astra and Indonesian government expand village stunting prevention program
Pasteur chief urges calm amid plague suspicions in Russia
Kozhikode steps up fish market checks amid spoilage and chemical concerns
