HHS Secretary RFK Jr. accepts recommendations to drop thimerosal from U.S. flu vaccines Agency says move is intended to ‘restore trust,’ though studies have found no health risk from the preservative

https://www.statnews.com/2025/07/23/kennedy-approves-acip-recommendation-thimerosal-removed-from-flu-vaccines/?utm_campaign=morning_rounds&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz--sX7b49Aq8fKU6EwMQkdwEf5J9k8DmD8H1Qw2x38LhSVhYmmsI8I9Mq61C-L3hVOHyKnU6WZrC2h7pRKfxcvjXgGEwLw&_hsmi=372736605&utm_content=372736605&utm_source=hs_email HHS commits to remove preservative with no proven risk from flu vax Yesterday, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. formally accepted recommendations that would require all vaccine manufacturers to discontinue using the preservative thimerosal in influenza vaccines. A statement issued by the department categorized the move as “a commitment to restore trust with Americans by removing risk while sustaining access to vaccines.” The practical effect of the move would be limited, STAT’s Helen Branswell reports, as only about 4% of flu vaccine doses brought to the U.S. market contain the preservative. While there’s abundant evidence that thimerosal is not a health risk, the FDA ordered manufacturers to stop using it in childhood vaccines decades ago, after it became a lightning rod for the anti-vaccine movement. Read more from Helen on what it means, as well as the two recommendations Kennedy didn’t accept.