Brownstone Institute

On the plus side, the Covid shot imposed on the public in 2021 and then stuck on the routine childhood schedule – likely for reasons of blocking liability for harms – has been removed from the schedule. Obviously, kids were never at high risk and the shot did not work to stop infection or transmission in any case. 

The shot is still available of course, but with conditions: only for the immunocompromised. It’s not a perfect solution but it is also the first time a shot for a disease has been removed from the schedule absent eradication or replacement. 

This is worthy of a cheer. It’s a serious attempt to roll back one of the more egregious policies of the last five years. This is backed by a flat-out cancellation of a $700 million contract to Moderna for a Bird flu shot. 

Even as we celebrate this progress, there is bad news. The FDA quietly announced approval for Moderna’s new generation Covid shot, implausibly called NexSpike. It’s been in development since 2023 perhaps. True, it comes with restrictions and expectations for trial data but this is not what most people were hoping. 

Why could the new managers not just stop this? Well, they are dealing with a ferocious machinery in place, one that has resisted attempts by political managers to reform the system for decades if not a century. 

Clearly, serious change is going to require more than good appointees. It is going to require a vast culture-wide change in opinion on the essential matter of freedom vs tyranny. There will not be any shortcuts, sadly. 

Elections can make a dent but cannot overthrow and replace. That is the reality we confront today.