Dr. Robert Redfield became the first former CDC director to publicly call for eliminating mRNA vaccines from the market. In a December 9 interview with Epoch Times, Redfield said there are “too many unknowns” about the technology and that the spike protein mRNA vaccines instruct cells to produce is “immunotoxic.” He described the mechanism as turning the body into a “spike-protein pr06oduction factory.”
Redfield doesn’t administer mRNA vaccines in his own practice, preferring traditional killed protein vaccines. In July 2024 Senate testimony, he said spike proteins are toxic, mRNA persists for months rather than degrading quickly as claimed, and nano-lipid particles cross the blood-brain barrier.
The technology generated over $100 billion in combined sales for Pfizer and Moderna. Pfizer’s Comirnaty brought in $36.7 billion in 2021—the best-selling drug in pharmaceutical history—before dropping to $13.5 billion in 2023. Moderna’s only commercial product, Spikevax, fell from $18.4 billion in 2022 to $6.8 billion in 2023.
Both companies projected seasonal boosters would create ongoing revenue. That model required universal federal recommendations. Secretary Kennedy’s reconstituted ACIP removed COVID vaccines for healthy children and pregnant women in May, then ended the 30-year universal hepatitis B birth dose in December. Each change eliminates the federal requirement that insurers cover vaccines at no cost.
Alternative technologies exist. Protein subunit vaccines deliver purified pathogen pieces rather than genetic instructions to manufacture them. They require no specialized cold storage, cost less, and have decades of safety data. The hepatitis B vaccine ACIP just made optional is a protein subunit vaccine approved in 1986. Novavax offers a protein subunit COVID vaccine as an alternative to Pfizer and Moderna’s mRNA products.
Colorado rejected ACIP’s hepatitis B decision through emergency rulemaking, citing AAP’s schedule instead. The state also maintained mRNA COVID vaccine recommendations for pregnant women and young children after Kennedy removed them federally. Justification for hepatitis B: 23 perinatal cases from 2001-2015, zero since 2016. That’s 23 cases in approximately one million births—a 0.0023 percent infection rate. The state won’t disclose whether cases were vaccine failures or missed maternal screening. Twenty-nine percent of Colorado births lack early prenatal care, the screening that catches 94 percent of at-risk infants.
ACIP’s presentation concluded “universal birth dose contribution to acute case decline is likely small.” Most prevention comes from maternal screening and targeted prophylaxis for high-risk infants. If Colorado’s cases occurred because mothers lacked prenatal care, improving screening access would address the problem.
HB 1027, signed by Governor Polis in April, allows Colorado to cite either ACIP or AAP recommendations. When Kennedy’s ACIP diverges, Colorado cites AAP—for mRNA COVID vaccines in pregnant women and children, for hepatitis B at birth. Officials claim they’re “following the science” while legislation explicitly enables choosing between conflicting recommendations.
Kennedy warned AAP that diverging from CDC’s list removes liability protections under the 1986 Vaccine Injury Act. Legal scholars call that misleading—VICP coverage doesn’t depend on AAP. But federal law requires insurers cover ACIP-recommended vaccines at no cost. Remove the recommendation, insurers can charge or deny coverage when current commitments expire in 2026.
Redfield’s concerns target mRNA specifically—the genetic instructions, spike protein production, persistence, distribution. He still administers vaccines, preferring killed virus and protein subunit formulations used for decades. Kennedy’s ACIP changes affect mRNA products while leaving traditional vaccines intact.
Colorado is defending the specific technology the former CDC director says should be eliminated. The state actively recommends Pfizer and Moderna’s mRNA COVID vaccines despite having protein subunit alternatives available. The hepatitis B justification—23 cases over 14 years—doesn’t explain why improved prenatal screening wouldn’t achieve the same result. The mandatory era that generated $100 billion is ending. Colorado chose to find new authorities to maintain it.
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