参议院中的民主党高层正在向美国卫生与公众服务部（HHS）施压，要求其对通过联邦计划为低收入家庭儿童提供新冠疫苗的过程中出现的明显延误作出解释。在致疾病控制与预防中心（CDC）主任埃里卡·施瓦茨（Erica Schwartz）和卫生部长罗伯特·F·肯尼迪（Robert F. Kennedy Jr.）的信中，参议院少数党领袖查克·舒默（Chuck Schumer，纽约州民主党人）以及参议员爱德华·马基（Edward Markey，马萨诸塞州民主党人）和伯尼·桑德斯（Bernie Sanders，佛蒙特州独立党人）要求说明：为何在疫苗获得批准后，该部门仍拖延了近一个月才正式启动通过“儿童疫苗计划”（Vaccines for Children, VFC）向儿童提供疫苗的工作。
Top Senate Democrats are pressing the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) about an apparent delay in making COVID-19 shots available through a federal program for low-income children. In a letter to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Erica Schwartz and Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Sens. Edward Markey (D-Mass.) and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) demanded answers about why the agency waited nearly a month after they were approved to make the shots available through the Vaccines for Children (VFC) Program.
该计划为美国超过一半的儿童提供免费疫苗接种服务，这些儿童包括那些享有医疗补助（Medicaid）保障的人、无保险或保险不足的人，以及美洲原住民和阿拉斯加原住民。议员们在信中写道：“CDC的这种拖延行为导致数百万依赖该计划的儿童不得不等待数周才能接种到疫苗，而这些疫苗本应优先提供给拥有商业保险的家庭。令人担忧的是，这种拖延行为再次体现了本届政府一贯削弱公众对疫苗的信任、以及阻碍公众获得疫苗的企图。”
The VFC offers free immunizations to more than half of U.S. children, including those who are covered by Medicaid, the uninsured or underinsured, and Native Americans and Alaska Natives. “CDC’s delay has left millions of children who rely on the VFC program waiting weeks for vaccines already available to families with commercial insurance,” the lawmakers wrote. “Concerningly, this delay follows a pattern of decisions by this Administration to undermine Americans’ faith in and access to vaccines.”
这些疫苗最初于8月27日获得美国食品药品监督管理局（FDA）的批准，随后不久便在大多数零售药店上市。在正常情况下，各州应在疫苗上市后的两周内就能下单采购。然而CDC直到9月23日才正式开始接受各州的采购申请；医护人员在接种疫苗之前还需要等待疫苗的运输到位。议员们指出：“在整个9月份期间，HHS只是含糊其辞地表示CDC正在‘最终确定相关安排’，并称新冠病毒的传播规律与流感等呼吸道病毒不同。但这些解释都无法说明为何会出现这样的延误。”
The vaccines were initially approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Aug. 27, and they were available in most retail pharmacies shortly afterwards. In a typical year, states are able to place orders for vaccines within two weeks of doses becoming commercially available. But the CDC did not open up the process for states until Sept. 23. Providers still needed to receive shipments before administering doses. “Throughout that month, HHS offered only vague assurances that CDC is ‘finalizing decisions’ and that COVID-19 does not follow the same seasonal pattern as flu and other respiratory viruses,” the lawmakers wrote.
HHS和CDC均未就FDA批准后四周内仍未决定的事项提供解释。”议员们呼吁肯尼迪和施瓦茨确认分发工作将不再中断地继续进行。"HHS和CDC有责任确保对纳税人资源的负责任管理，并确保通过联邦资助项目采购的疫苗适合这些项目服务的人群。新冠疫苗可供各州通过‘儿童疫苗计划’订购，"HHS发言人艾米莉·希利亚德在给《国会山报》的声明中说。
“Neither explanation accounts for the delay. And neither HHS nor CDC has provided an explanation for what remained undecided for four weeks after FDA approval.”The lawmakers called on Kennedy and Schwartz to confirm that the distribution will proceed without further interruption. "HHS and CDC have a responsibility to ensure responsible stewardship of taxpayer resources and that vaccines purchased through federally funded programs are appropriate for the populations those programs serve. COVID-19 vaccines are available for states to order through the Vaccines for Children program," HHS spokeswoman Emily Hilliard said in a statement to The Hill.
希利亚德表示，采购新冠疫苗没有截止日期，因为病毒不可预测。"与流感和其他具有更可预测季节性模式的呼吸道病毒不同，SARS-CoV-2全年传播，活动因地区而异，高峰期出现在不同的时间，包括夏季和冬季，"她说。在特朗普总统的第二个任期内，肯尼迪试图从根本上改变国家的疫苗政策。2025年5月，肯尼迪表示，CDC将不再建议健康儿童或孕妇接种新冠疫苗。
Hilliard said there are no deadlines for procuring COVID-19 vaccines because the virus is not predictable. "Unlike influenza and other respiratory viruses with more predictable seasonal patterns, SARS-CoV-2 circulates year-round, with activity varying by region and increases occurring at different times, including during the summer and winter months," she said. Throughout President Trump’s second term, Kennedy has tried to fundamentally change the nation’s vaccine policy. In May 2025, Kennedy said that the CDC would no longer recommend the COVID vaccine for healthy children or pregnant women.
上个月，特朗普签署了一项行政命令，指示在没有科学依据的情况下将麻疹、腮腺炎和风疹（M
Last month, Trump signed an executive order directing the splitting of the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine into separate shots without scientific justification.