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2w ago

HHS Cancels $500 Million in BARDA mRNA Vaccine Contracts, Draws Widespread Criticism

Experts warn that the decision rests on contested evidence with potentially far-reaching impacts on pandemic readiness, mRNA-based therapies, national health security.

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Overview

  • The department under Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. executed a coordinated wind-down on August 5, terminating 22 BARDA contracts worth nearly $500 million for late-stage mRNA vaccine projects.
  • Kennedy’s office says the funds are being withdrawn because emergency-funded mRNA technologies “failed to meet current scientific standards,” while NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya cites a lack of public trust as the rationale.
  • Independent reviews, including a STAT analysis, contend that the evidence packet Kennedy linked is an external bibliography tied to a skeptical book and does not justify ending mRNA development.
  • Public-health experts warn that cutting BARDA support for mRNA platforms could weaken U.S. rapid-response vaccine capacity, manufacturing scale-up and strategic stockpiling.
  • Reports indicate some canceled awards involved non-mRNA or non-vaccine work—such as RNAi therapeutics and inhalable formulations—raising fears of collateral damage to broader biomedical research.