Reaction and Fallout as HHS ‘Winds Down’ mRNA Vaccine Development, Canceling $500 Million in Projects

Doctor or scientist shows a vial of genetic agent as a vaccine or therapy against Corona or Covid-19 as a symbolic image | Image Credit: © Dan Race - stock.adobe.com

The United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced on Aug. 5, 2025 that it was launching a coordinated wind-down of all of its messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccine development activities under the auspices of the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) (1).

Reported failures of mRNA vaccines

HHS’ action includes the cancellation and de-scoping of 22 total projects worth nearly a combined $500 million and follows what the department said was a “comprehensive review” of investments related to mRNA advancement that were initiated during the public health emergency prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic (1).

“We reviewed the science, listened to the experts, and acted,” HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said in a press release, adding that “the data show these vaccines fail to protect effectively against upper respiratory infections like COVID and flu. We’re shifting that funding toward safer, broader vaccine platforms that remain effective even as viruses mutate” (1).

What’s being terminated

Contracts with Emory University and Tiba Biotech will be terminated, and mRNA-related work will be de-scoped in existing contracts with Luminary Labs, ModeX Therapeutics, and CSL Seqirus (1).

In addition, numerous pre-award solicitations from companies including Pfizer, Sanofi, and Gritstone Bio are either being canceled or rejected, and collaborations with the Department of Defense involving such companies as AstraZeneca, HDT Bio, and Moderna will be restructured.

RFK Jr.’s record on vaccinations

Although Secretary Kennedy has garnered attention in this particular area of public health given his founding and former chairmanship of Children’s Health Defense, an anti-vaccination nonprofit, he said HHS under his leadership is not advocating to pull back on advancement for all vaccines—just those based on mRNA, with a bigger focus instead on whole-virus vaccines and novel platforms.

The HHS press release said that, aside from the cancellation of the projects in development, “other uses” of mRNA technology would not be affected, though what those uses are were not specified.

“Let me be absolutely clear: HHS supports safe, effective vaccines for every American who wants them. That’s why we’re moving beyond the limitations of mRNA and investing in better solutions,” Kennedy said (1).

Former Trump officials respond

Even so, opposing reaction to HHS’ decision was strong and swift. Rick Bright, the former BARDA director who was reassigned to a lesser position at the National Institutes of Health and later resigned from the federal government during the first term of President Donald Trump, all of which happened at the height of the pandemic, said in a series of posts on X that it was a “bad day for science” and a “huge blow to our national security” that would have “dangerous repercussions” (2,3).

“BARDA invested in mRNA technology precisely because it could deliver safe, scalable vaccines in record time, a capability proven during COVID,” Bright said (3). “By dismantling that platform, we’re crippling our front-line defense, just ahead of unknown biological threats.”

Former US Surgeon General Jerome Adams, MD, who also served during the first Trump administration from 2017 to 2021, quoted one of Bright’s X posts while also delivering more elaborated thoughts in a longer thread on the platform.

“I’ve tried to be objective and non-alarmist in response to current HHS actions—but quite frankly this move is going to cost lives,” Adams said (4). “mRNA technology has uses that go far beyond vaccines, and the [COVID-19] vaccine[s] they helped develop in record time is credited with saving millions.”

More of our mRNA coverage

In the days preceding HHS’ announcement, Pharmaceutical Technology® Group examined the ways in which mRNA is helping to evolve drug development even beyond vaccines. An even deeper dive on the topic by Cheryl Barton is available at PharmTech.com.

References

1. HHS. HHS Winds Down mRNA Vaccine Development Under BARDA. Press Release. Aug. 5, 2025.
2. Florko, N. Rick Bright, Trump Administration Vaccine Expert Turned Whistleblower, Resigns NIH Post. STATnews.com, Oct. 6, 2020 (accessed Aug. 6, 2025).
3. Rick Bright (@RickABright) on X. X.com, Aug. 5, 2025 (accessed Aug. 6, 2025).
4. JeromeAdams (@JeromeAdamsMD) on X. X.com, Aug. 5, 2025 (accessed Aug. 6, 2025).