Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall joined attorneys general from other states in opposing the CDC's guidelines for adding the COVID-19 vaccine to the recommended vaccine schedule for children.
The CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) voted Thursday to add the COVID-19 vaccine to the 2023 childhood and adult immunization schedule.
Attorney General Steve Marshall joined 11 other AGs, calling on the ACIP not to include the COVID-19 vaccine and chastising the motivations and methods for doing so.
According to Marshall, the vote was improperly conducted as it came after the period of public comment concluded.
"This week, the CDC acted without proper authorization in voting to release its child immunization recommendations before the close of the public comment period," Marshall said. "But that's just for starters. The CDC's decision is unnecessary and, in many states subjects children to retaliation for their parent or guardian's decision to decline COVID-19 vaccinations.
Eleven other AGs joined with Marshall to address what they concluded to be issues with the vaccine. Among arguments for the lack of effectiveness of the vaccine, the AGs also concluded that the only reason for adding the vaccine to VFC was merely a method for giving money to big pharma.
"The COVID-19 vaccine does not provide the same protection against life-threatening illnesses. Instead, it could put more kids at risk instead of protecting them which is the purpose of the VCF," the group letter read. "The CDC should not be treating kids in low-income households as lab experiments. Nor should pharmaceutical companies be allowed to use low-income families as cash cows."
"Given the lack of need for kids to obtain the vaccines and their lack of effectiveness, adding the COVID-19 vaccine to the list of childhood immunizations amounts to little more than a payout to big pharmaceutical companies at the expense of kids and parents,"
Despite the CDC's inclusion of the vaccine, Marshall maintains that there is no reason for parents to be concerned about declining the vaccine for their children since Alabama law prohibits public institutions from discriminating based on vaccination status.
In 2021, Gov. Kay Ivey signed a law prohibiting public and private education institutions from requiring students to prove any new immunization status as a condition of attendance.
Marshall joined attorneys general from Arizona, Florida, Indiana, Louisiana, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, South Carolina, Texas, Oklahoma and Utah.
To connect with the author of this story, or to comment, email craig.monger@1819news.com.
Don't miss out! Subscribe to our newsletter and get our top stories every weekday morning.
