In the realm of scientific advances, mRNA is special. It is as transformational to medicine as the internet was to communication.
RFK cuts mRNA vaccine funding saying HHS will focus on other types
Heath Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced cuts to 22 programs working to develop mRNA vaccines.
The United States recently took a dangerous step backward in its pursuit of lifesaving cures and pandemic preparedness. The Department of Health and Human Services shut down 22 federally funded mRNA vaccine programs, representing $500 million in strategic biomedical research.
That threatens one of the most transformative technologies in modern medicine.
Perhaps even more alarmingly, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., alongside the director of the National Institutes of Health, made numerous false assertions about mRNA technology. These statements could stifle American innovation, impairing our nation’s ability to compete with economic rivals and defend ourselves from biothreats.
mRNA vaccines are transformational
In the realm of scientific advances, mRNA is special. It is as transformational to medicine as the internet was to communication.
Unlike traditional vaccines, which can take years to develop and longer to manufacture at scale, mRNA platforms enable medical researchers to design targeted interventions in days and manufacture them within weeks.
This speed and precision in delivering instructions that train immune systems to recognize and eliminate threats − from COVID to cancer − provides America a critical weapon against pandemics, bioweapons and other deadly diseases that could affect American families.
China understands these facts, which is why it is pouring billions into next-generation biotechnology to capture global leadership.
The technology has been studied for nearly two decades, but a real breakthrough occurred during the COVID-19 crisis, when mRNA helped deliver vaccines years ahead of forecasts and saved millions of lives. I was honored to serve on the White House Coronavirus Task Force under the leadership of President Donald Trump, who made the bold call to invest in mRNA’s speed and effectiveness.
Through that initiative, known as Operation Warp Speed, American scientists gained the resources to innovate without bureaucratic delay. I worked alongside national and local leaders to ensure these efforts were grounded in science and safety, and that clinical trials included women and underserved minorities.
The result, as President Trump recently declared, “was one of the most incredible things ever done in this country.” Within months, vaccines were authorized and distributed nationwide.
Yet today, HHS is disparaging and dismantling the same mRNA technology that proved America could deliver cures at warp speed. And its decision doesn’t merely halt work on COVID-19 and influenza vaccines. It also guts ongoing vaccine research for cancer, HIV, malaria, tuberculosis and other high-mortality diseases.
Rolling back progress on medical research
In oncology, mRNA is enabling personalized cancer vaccines that target a patient’s unique tumor mutations, destroying cancer cells while sparing healthy tissue. In one trial, combining an mRNA vaccine with standard immunotherapy reduced melanoma recurrence or death by nearly half.
Early pancreatic cancer data shows patients who responded to an mRNA vaccine remained cancer free far longer than non-responders. This technology could eventually allow Americans to be treated with vaccines tailored to their individual cancer types, instead of receiving chemotherapy or bone marrow transplants.
In HIV research, early-stage mRNA vaccines have produced protective antibodies in 80% of trial participants – progress that could transform treatment from a daily drug regimen to a once-a-year shot. Malaria and tuberculosis candidates, developed by firms such as BioNTech, could save millions in the developing world, which would also spark global economic development and promote stability.
Slashing funding for mRNA vaccines will stifle future breakthroughs like these, as well as research into treatments for brain cancers, cystic fibrosis and genetic disorders once thought untreatable. Moreover, it will erode our strategic readiness for the next pandemic or bioterrorist attack.
Trump should do what he did in 2020
During the recent presidential transition, before Sec. Kennedy was confirmed, I temporarily rejoined HHS as an unpaid special government employee. In that role, I assessed America’s potential responses to an emergent deadly strain of avian influenza.
My conclusion, after speaking extensively with national leaders and reviewing recent research, was that mRNA technology would be uniquely able to respond in the time frame that would be required to prevent millions of deaths.
This technology is not a panacea. It will not solve all our infectious and chronic disease challenges, but it is an essential part of the multifaceted strategy we must pursue.
We need to continue research into mRNA – as well as research and development of traditional vaccines, vaccines based on other novel platforms, home testing to help patients rapidly diagnose their conditions, and antiviral medicines, like those for COVID, HIV and Hepatitis C, that can be curative and lifesaving.
The nation that wins the biomedical innovation race will set the terms for global health security for decades to come. President Trump should again do what he did in 2020: bet on American innovation and exceptionalism to harness mRNA’s potential, protect our national security and lead the world into the next era of health.
Brett P. Giroir is CEO of Altesa BioSciences. He was the assistant secretary for health and acting Food and Drug Administration commissioner during President Donald Trump’s first administration.
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