Are we going to really have to worry about Polio again?

🔬Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s lawyer petitioned the FDA to revoke approval of the polio vaccine in 2022, despite its decades-long inclusion in the US childhood immunization schedule.

🏥Kennedy's goal is to make vaccines optional and less accessible, potentially benefiting pharmaceutical companies by making them costlier and inconvenient to obtain.

Public Health Implications

🦠The US saw its first polio case in over 30 years in 2022, with the CDC confirming that only inactivated polio vaccine has been used since routine vaccination began.

💉Removing the polio vaccine from the routine schedule would likely significantly reduce uptake, as it is effectively mandatory for school entry despite not being legally required.

Strategic Approach

🧠Kennedy's efforts to revoke polio vaccine approval are part of a broader strategy to challenge vaccine policies, including petitioning the FDA to pause distribution of 13 other vaccines.