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KFF designs, conducts and analyzes original public opinion and survey research on Americans’ attitudes, knowledge, and experiences with the health care system to help amplify the public’s voice in major national debates.
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A comprehensive timeline of public health policy actions by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) under the Trump administration from 2025-2026, with key dates, descriptions, and impacts.
Weeks after the Trump administration reduced the number of childhood vaccine recommended for routine use, public trust in the CDC is at its lowest since the COVID-19 pandemic, and less than half are confident in federal agencies' ability to make such recommendations. Among those who have heard about the revised recommendations, more say they expect the changes to have a negative impact than a positive one on children’s health.
In the weeks after the Trump administration reduced the number of recommended childhood vaccines for routine use, the public’s trust in the CDC remains at its lowest point. Among those who have heard about the recent changes to the recommended childhood vaccine schedule, more say they expect the changes to have a negative impact than a positive one on children’s health.
This KFF Health Tracking Poll finds that many, including women of reproductive age, remain unfamiliar with key facts about mifepristone. Fewer than half of all adults say they believe abortion pills are safe now, compared to over half of all adults two years ago. This poll explores awareness and perception of the recent FDA review of the medication, and support for policies aimed at restricting it.
When federal health officials frame unverified [Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System] reports as evidence of vaccine-caused deaths, it may become more difficult for health communicators to explain the system’s limitations and the vaccines’ extensive safety evidence.
These findings from the KFF/Washington Post Survey of Parents shed light on parents who support the Make America Healthy Again movement, including the issues they see as top concerns for their children's wellbeing and their attitudes when it comes to vaccines and government regulations on food.
This issue brief gives an overview of the main systems used by the federal government to track vaccine safety and adverse events following vaccinations. The brief reviews the history of federal vaccine safety systems, describes the key systems and their strengths and limitations, and also discusses how vaccine safety issues have become the subject of more scrutiny under the Trump administration.
This brief provides an overview of vaccine coverage requirements by payer or program, as they relate to ACIP and the CDC.
This brief describes four key federal vaccine advisory committees and discusses policy issues and questions they currently face. The four committees are the Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee (VRBPAC) at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA); the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC); the National Vaccine Advisory Committee (NVAC) at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS); and the Advisory Commission on Childhood Vaccines (ACCV) at HHS.
Taken together, the new guidance on clinical trial requirements, the more restricted approval of the Novavax vaccine, and anticipated changes to CDC recommendations add up to fewer Americans eligible for COVID-19 vaccines and more limited access to these vaccines compared to previous years...such a shift would place the U.S. more in line with Australia, Canada, and countries in Europe.
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