RFK Jr.'s Lawyer Petitioned the FDA to Revoke Polio Vaccine Approval

Mar. 15, 2025

Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.Photo:Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty

Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty

The vaccine, which was invented in 1955, eliminated polio in the United States, theU.S. Centers for Disease Controlsays.

Kennedy — who was picked for incoming President-electDonald Trump’s cabinet to lead the Department ofHealth and Human Services— has been vetting candidates for the office with the assistance of Siri, who specializes in vaccine lawsuits, theNew York Timesreports.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s lawyer Aaron Siri.AP Photo/James Pollard

AP Photo/James Pollard

Siri’s petition, which was filed in 2022 on behalf of the anti-vaccine group Informed Consent Action Network, asks that the Federal Drug Administration suspend or withdraw the approval of the polio vaccine “until a properly controlled and properly powered double-blind trial of sufficient duration is conducted to assess the safety of this product,” according to theNYT.TheCDCsays there is no cure for polio (or poliomyelitis) but “it can be prevented with safe and effective vaccination.” Siri is asking the FDA to amend the polio vaccine label to include a warning that it “does not prevent poliovirus transmission."

Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., with President-elect Donald Trump in August 2024.Rebecca Noble/Getty

Rebecca Noble/Getty

Serious complications from polio include meningitis, and spinal and respiratory paralysis — which can be fatal, theCDCsays, as the muscles that help you breathe are also impacted.

About 16,000 cases of polio occurred each year in the U.S. in the 20th century compared with none in 2020.

Iron lungs to aid polio patients in a Los Angeles hospital in the 1950s.Bettmann/Getty

Bettmann/Getty

According to theGlobal Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI), the once-global disease remains endemic in only two countries: Pakistan and Afghanistan. Since the launch of GPEI, the vaccine has prevented an estimated 20 million cases of paralysis in children.

Siri has contacted the FDA about pausing 13 other vaccines, theNYTreports, with his primary concern being the inclusion of aluminum in vaccines for diseases likehepatitis A,hepatitis B, diphtheria,pertussis, andtetanus.

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source: people.com