Vaccines and Immunization

Vaccines are among the most powerful public health advancements and are critical for protecting health and advancing equity—having saved more lives than any other medical intervention in history. Vaccines are not only safe but also cost-effective in preventing death and disease. Policy efforts to boost vaccination rates are critical to protecting the health of Americans, preventing deadly outbreaks of new and emerging diseases, and ensuring a stable economy. These policies include building a robust vaccine supply, securing no-cost access to vaccines for patients, expanding the vaccine workforce and infrastructure, improving vaccine community engagement and education, and preventing the spread of vaccine misinformation and disinformation.

Vaccines are pictured at a children’s hospital.
Vaccines are pictured at a children’s hospital in San Diego on December 15, 2020. (Getty/AFP/Ariana Drehsler)
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What the Trump Administration, RFK Jr., and the MAHA Report Got Wrong About Improving Children’s Health Article
A health care provider vaccinates a toddler in the leg as the toddler and his father look on.

What the Trump Administration, RFK Jr., and the MAHA Report Got Wrong About Improving Children’s Health

The Make America Healthy Again Commission’s strategy report underscores the importance of childhood nutrition but casts doubt on proven health strategies; fails to acknowledge the Trump administration’s harm to children’s health; and distracts from effective strategies to prevent chronic diseases such as diabetes and obesity and to ensure access to vaccines, food security, and clean air and water.

Research in Ruin: Slashing the NIH Will Stifle Development of Lifesaving Medical Treatments and Harm the Economy Past Event

Research in Ruin: Slashing the NIH Will Stifle Development of Lifesaving Medical Treatments and Harm the Economy

Please join the Center for American Progress for the next in a series of virtual events highlighting the impact that DOGE’s cuts are having on the lives of everyday Americans; this event will focus on how cuts to NIH will limit progress in preventing and curing diseases and damage the economy in the process.

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Project 2025 Would Eliminate No-Cost Vaccines for 54 Million Medicare Beneficiaries Article
A patient receives a COVID-19 vaccine from a pharmacist at CVS.

Project 2025 Would Eliminate No-Cost Vaccines for 54 Million Medicare Beneficiaries

The Project 2025 agenda would cause Medicare beneficiaries to lose no-cost access to lifesaving vaccines, increasing their health care costs and jeopardizing their health—particularly for older Black and Latino adults and those with lower incomes.

Jill Rosenthal, Marquisha Johns

5 Facts About the Monkeypox Outbreak Article
Health care workers work at intake tents in New York City.

5 Facts About the Monkeypox Outbreak

While monkeypox is less contagious than COVID-19 and largely preventable through vaccination, the outbreak has highlighted that the U.S. public health system remains underprepared for crises.

Marquisha Johns

Covid vaccine and mask mandates expose alt-right Christian hypocrisy In the News

Covid vaccine and mask mandates expose alt-right Christian hypocrisy

Maggie Siddiqi explains why in the face of a deadly pandemic, religion must not be used as an excuse to avoid lifesaving vaccination and mask requirements.

NBC News

Maggie Siddiqi

Biden Admin Should Expand Its Health Care Vaccine Requirement In the News

Biden Admin Should Expand Its Health Care Vaccine Requirement

Author Emily Gee argues that the Biden administration should expand its recent vaccine mandate—requiring vaccination for staff at all nursing homes receiving Medicare and Medicaid funds—to all entities receiving payment from the programs.

Newsweek

Emily Gee

Mandatory COVID-19 Vaccination for Health Care Workers as a Condition for Medicare and Medicaid Participation Article
A nurse manager in Washington, D.C., fills a syringe with a dose of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine during a walk-up clinic at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts on May 6, 2021. (Getty/Chip Somodevilla)

Mandatory COVID-19 Vaccination for Health Care Workers as a Condition for Medicare and Medicaid Participation

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services should make COVID-19 vaccination mandatory for providers participating in Medicare and Medicaid, as this action would protect vulnerable patients, set a positive example for other employers, and contribute to the national effort to contain the virus.

Jill Rosenthal, Emily Gee, Maura Calsyn

Vaccine rollout is a success story unlike any in the world In the News

Vaccine rollout is a success story unlike any in the world

Authors Jill Rosenthal and Ben Hatt commend the United States’ vaccine rollout and explain what must be done to ensure its continued success in the months ahead.

the Tyler Morning Telegraph

Jill Rosenthal, Ben Hatt

Employers Can Accelerate COVID-19 Vaccination Efforts Report
Pharmacy technicians prepare doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine at a mass COVID-19 vaccination event on January 30, 2021, in Denver.

Employers Can Accelerate COVID-19 Vaccination Efforts

Until the United States achieves a higher rate of immunity, the coronavirus remains a threat to public health and the nation’s economic recovery.

Emily Gee, Nicole Rapfogel

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