HHS Secretary Kennedy Announces Federal Push to Study Vaccine Injuries

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced a comprehensive federal effort to examine vaccine injuries after touring the NIH campus in Bethesda, Maryland, and listening to affected patients. The plan includes launching a vaccine research clinic at the NIH Clinical Center and creating a specific billing code that would compensate doctors for documenting serious vaccine side effects. Additional measures call for modernizing electronic health records, enhancing the CDC’s Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System, and establishing reimbursement policies via the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.

Kennedy emphasized the need to listen to patients rather than dismiss their concerns, citing a 2025 PubMed Central study that found significant under-reporting of adverse events. The announcement also references past FDA actions under former commissioner Marty Makary, noting that recent regulatory rigor has been rolled back. Advocacy groups such as React19, founded by patient Brianne Dressen, have highlighted cases like severe reactions to an AstraZeneca COVID-19 trial, underscoring the demand for more transparent safety research.