The Trump administration plans to reportedly remove COVID-19 vaccines from the US market within months

President Donald Trump and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. are reportedly preparing to phase out the COVID-19 vaccine “within months,” according to an associate of Kennedy’s. The claim marks a sharp reversal for Trump, who once celebrated the vaccine’s development under Operation Warp Speed as a “historic success.” An HHS spokesperson declined to comment on possible policy changes.

Back in December 2020, Trump praised doctors, scientists, and industry leaders for delivering vaccines at record speed during the height of the pandemic, but skepticism from parts of his political base has grown since then. Kennedy, meanwhile, has long drawn criticism for remarks about vaccine safety that experts have called misleading, though he maintains he is not “anti-vaccine.” Earlier this month, he pulled $500 million in federal funding for 22 mRNA vaccine development projects, claiming the data showed weak protection against COVID-19 and flu infections.

British cardiologist and Kennedy ally Dr. Aseem Malhotra told the Daily Beast that Trump and Kennedy’s move to end the vaccine could come soon, with support from influential figures close to Trump’s family. Malhotra said the decision might unfold in stages as more data is assessed but could also come in a single sweeping announcement. He noted that such a move would likely trigger public fear and legal battles but argued that many around Kennedy “cannot understand” why the vaccine is still prescribed.

The White House has denied Malhotra’s claims, stressing that the administration’s decisions are grounded in “Gold Standard Science.” Spokesperson Kush Desai told Newsweek that unless an official announcement is made, talk of a vaccine ban should be regarded as speculation.