Source: The Independent

Trump's team wants vaccines to stop bird flu. RFK Jr. says it could turn 'flocks into mutation factories'

The spread of H5N1 bird flu has sickened dozens of Americans, resulted in a nationwide egg shortage and led to the deaths of more than 166 million poultry birds

Julia Musto

in New York

Wednesday 12 March 2025 18:22 GMT

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., says that vaccinating the nation's poultry flocks against pervasive H5N1 bird flu could turn them into "mutation factories."

"All of my agencies advise against vaccination of birds, because if you vaccinate with a leaky vaccine, in other words a vaccine that does not provide sterilizing immunity, that does not absolutely protect against the disease, you turn those flocks into mutation factories," he told Fox News' Sean Hannity. "They're teaching the organism how to mutate."

But, vaccines could be key to the administration's response going forward -- at least, according to the Department of Agriculture. H5N1 bird flu infections have resulted in the deaths of more than 166 million poultry, and one Louisiana resident. Pathways toward vaccine production were a part of its billion-dollar strategy to get both infections and egg prices down. The administration is investing $100 million into vaccine research, specifically.

The department issued a conditional license for a vaccine for use in chickens in February. Vaccines for cows are also under development, according to the American Society for Microbiology.

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Read more: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/health/rfk-jr-bird-flu-trump-administration-vaccines-b2713707.html

Alternate link: https://news.yahoo.com/news/trump-team-wants-vaccines-stop-182239001.html