News India Times

www.newsindiatimes.com – that’s all you need to know FDA’s Vinay Prasad Wants More Clinical Trials Into Whether People Should Get Multiple Respiratory Vaccines Together regulators would discourage a practice that can increase vaccination rates. “For many, this inconvenience of having to return for a second visit just to get the other vaccine, will deter them from getting that other vaccine,” said L.J. Tan, chief policy officer for Immunize.org, an immunization advocacy organization. “Access to vaccination suffers.” Under HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., federal health agencies have upended how they approach coro- navirus vaccination. The FDA last week narrowed ap- proval of updated coronavirus shots to high-risk groups, including those 65 and older and people with underlying conditions that elevate their risk of severe disease. The Biden administration embraced doubling flu and coronavirus shots as a strategy to boost coverage earlier in the coronavirus pandemic. “This is why God gave us two arms – one for the flu shot and the other one for the covid shot,” Ashish Jha, then the nation’s coronavirus coordinator, told reporters in September 2022. But Prasad, who became prominent as a critic of the mainstream public health pandemic strategy, denigrated this strategy as lacking evidence and cited Jha’s com- ments as an example of why Donald Trump returned to theWhite House. “Ashish Jha should remember that God gave people two arms,” Prasad wrote on X in November 2024, one week after the presidential election. “One to vote for Donald Trump, and the other one to give thumbs up to RFK Jr. His Non-Evidence-Based, pro-corporate conduct asWhite House covid czar is the reason the backlash ex- ists.” STUDIES SAY EXISTING TACTIC IS SAFE AND EFFECTIVE Studies support the safety of getting both the flu and coronavirus vaccines at the same time, according to federal documents and outside experts. One CDC study showed that people who received a flu vaccine and coro- navirus vaccine at the same time were slightly more likely to have reactions including fatigue, headache and muscle ache than people who only got a coronavirus vaccine, but those reactions were mostly mild and went away quickly. According to data posted on the CDC website as of Aug. 18, flu, covid-19 and RSV vaccines “may be coad- ministered (given at the same visit)” and there is no minimum wait period between shots. Dan Jernigan – who used to oversee vaccine safety at the CDC and resigned last week to protest what he described as efforts by Kennedy to politicize the vaccine recommendation process – said the federal government has not identified serious issues with coadminister- ing coronavirus and flu shots. If there were serious side effects, Jernigan said, evidence would have emerged by now from the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System that closely monitors coronavirus vaccines. In 2021, theWorld Health Organization concluded based on preliminary data that coadministration does not interfere with the effectiveness of either the coronavi- rus or influenza vaccine; that the amount of reactogenic- ity, or side effects, is acceptable; and that coadministra- tion is tolerable for those who choose to get the vaccines at the same time. Since then, more research has been conducted back- ing theWHO’s findings, said Tan of Immunize.org, who also co-authored a March paper extensively reviewing studies of coadministering flu and coronavirus vaccines. WHY DID THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION REVERSE COURSE? Prasad detailed the Trump administration’s latest vaccine shift in a memo outlining his decision to limit approval of Pfizer’s coronavirus shot to high-risk groups. He wrote that administering several vaccines at the same time “offers the theoretical benefit” of boosting vaccina- tion rates for the respiratory virus season. But, he wrote, there were potential downsides, arguing that doing so could decrease the shots’ effectiveness and complicate vaccine safety data. He did not cite new studies supporting the change, but rather asserted that the design and scale of past studies have been insufficient. Prasad called for companies to conduct randomized controlled trials on administering the coronavirus, RSV and flu shots. “The burden of proof is not on manufacturers to be able to do something that clearly has been done millions of times safely,” Jha, the covid czar under Biden, said in an interview. “The burden of proof is on people who are calling this into question, given the long-standing track record we have of coadministration of vaccines.” Jesse Goodman, a Georgetown University professor of medicine who previously served as the FDA’s top vaccine regulator, said such studies would be costly and bur- densome – and are “unlikely to provide important new information.” Pfizer declined to comment. But the company issued a letter to health care providers saying that certain batches of its coronavirus vaccine contain “unapproved prescrib- ing information inside the cartons,” indicating that the company had been seeking to add the coadministration of the shot to the label. Prasad’s move could lay the groundwork for the federal government to change its recommendations around vaccines for the respiratory virus season, several medical experts said. A policy shift about coadministration could come from the FDA or CDC’s vaccine advisory panel, the Ad- visory Committee on Immunization Practices. Kennedy recently purged the members of the influential panel and replaced them with his own picks, several of whom have criticized coronavirus vaccine policy. -TheWashington Post By a StaffWriter Vote Common Good Endorses Sanjyot Dunung For Illinois’ 8th Congressional District I ndian American Sanjyot Dunung, Congressional candidate for Illinois 8th District, received the endorsement of Vote Common Good, a leading national organization mobilizing faith-driven voters toward candidates who it evaluates as prioritizing the common good. This endorsement, in addition to the recent ASPIRE (Asian Americans & Pacific Islanders Rising & Empow- ering Political Action Committee (ASPIRE PAC), her campaign announced May 28 (www.sanjyotforcon- gress.com. ), this newVote Common Good endorse- ment marks a significant moment for Dunung’s cam- paign as it continues to gain momentum among voters seeking commonsense solutions, responsible change, and shared common values, a press release from the candidate’s office said. “Sanjyot is precisely the kind of leader our move- ment seeks to uplift. Her commitment to people, her passion for community service, and her vision for an America where all voices are heard align perfectly with our mission, “Robb Ryerse, political director of Vote Common Good, is quoted saying in the press release. “We believe she will champion policies that serve not only Illinois’ 8th District, but the common good of all Americans.” Vote Common Good selected Dunung after a review of her campaign priorities, community engagement, and vision for 21st-century governance. “I’m passionate about building bridges across our communities by focusing on our shared values,” said Dunung. “I am deeply honored to receive the endorse- ment of Vote Common Good. Their work reminds us all that politics is, at its heart, a moral calling—a call to care for our neighbors and to build a society where every person can thrive. I am committed to representing the people of Illinois’ 8th District with integrity, compas- sion, and an unwavering dedication to the public good.” Dunung is the daughter of Indian immigrants and was raised in Des Plaines, Ill. A small business owner, Dunung has three sons. She is a social scientist and ed- ucator, who has served on Biden’s foreign policy work- ing group focused on international trade and serves on the Boards of National Small Business Association and Truman Center for National Policy. PHOTO:Facebook @sanjyotforcongress.com Sanjyot Dunung, right, speaking to a constituent during her campaign for Congress from Illinois’ 8th Congressional District. - Continued From Page 6 US Affairs News India Times (September 6, 2025 - September 12, 2025) September 12, 2025 7