U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced Thursday the reinstatement of the Task Force on Safer Childhood Vaccines—one day before he was due to respond to a lawsuit alleging he failed to create the panel as required by law.
According to the Department of Health and Human Services, Congress established the task force to improve the safety, quality, and oversight of vaccines administered to American children. The panel is mandated under the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act of 1986 and must include the directors of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, as well as the commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration. The law also requires biennial progress reports to Congress.
NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya said the reinstatement “reaffirms our commitment to rigorous science, continuous improvement, and the trust of American families,” adding that NIH is proud to lead efforts to ensure vaccine safety without compromise. The original task force was disbanded in 1998.
Attorney Ray Flores filed suit in May, claiming Kennedy had failed to fulfill the statutory requirement since taking office. The lawsuit noted that in over 35 years, no HHS secretary had reported to Congress on steps taken to improve childhood vaccine safety. Flores argued that Kennedy’s grace period to correct his predecessors’ failures had ended, given that more than 100 days had passed since President Donald Trump appointed him to lead HHS.
Kennedy himself had sought similar records prior to joining the Trump administration, suing in 2018 to obtain task force reports before dismissing the case when HHS said none could be found. Flores indicated Thursday that he expects to seek dismissal of the current case without prejudice if the reinstatement meets agreed terms.
