(NEW YORK) — Four Western U.S. states have come together to issue unified vaccine recommendations for the upcoming respiratory illness season, and California has enacted a new law to base the state’s immunization guidance on independent medical organizations, rather than the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The West Coast states including California, Washington, Oregon, and Hawaii — all led by Democratic governors — banded together earlier this month to create the West Coast Health Alliance (WCHA), citing what they called an erosion of trust in the CDC.
“The alliance represents a unified regional response to the Trump Administration’s destruction of the U.S. CDC’s credibility and scientific integrity,” stated a press release Wednesday from California Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Also on Wednesday, Newsom signed a new law, which will shift the immunization recommendations the state will recommend from the CDC to independent medical organizations that include the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP), American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG).
The recommendations issued by the West Coast states on Wednesday include guidance for receiving the COVID-19, flu and RSV vaccines.
“Science matters. We will ensure our policies are based on rigorous science. We stand united with our partner states and medical experts to put public health and safety before politics. I will continue to do everything in my power to protect Washingtonians,” said Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson.
The announcement came the day ahead of a two-day meeting of the CDC’s the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), during which the panel of advisers recently picked by HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy is expected to vote Thursday on some vaccines on the CDC childhood immunization schedule and Friday on recommendations for COVID-19 vaccines.
The FDA has approved the new COVID-19 vaccines only for those at high risk for severe illness including those 65 and older. Anyone who falls out of those categories is allowed to get a prescription for the vaccine after discussing it with their doctor.
The association that represents many insurance companies (AHIP) pledged to cover the cost for any vaccine that is part of the current guidelines before the new ACIP makes their recommendations this week. The current guidelines suggest anyone older than 6 months should consider getting the COVID-19 and annual flu shot until at least the end of 2026.
Several states have also made rules that allow anyone who wants a vaccine to get one at their pharmacy.
In a statement earlier this month, a spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services blasted the West Coast states’ plans for a health alliance, criticizing COVID-era policies in “Democrat-run states.”
The statement added, “ACIP remains the scientific body guiding immunization recommendations in this country, and HHS will ensure policy is based on rigorous evidence and Gold Standard Science, not the failed politics of the pandemic.
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