Federal contracts covering adult and pediatric COVID-19 vaccines for fiscal years 2026 and 2027 are fueling renewed debate over vaccine safety, federal spending and the Trump administration’s health policy.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is facing criticism after awarding Pfizer approximately $1.24 billion in federal contracts for adult and pediatric COVID-19 vaccines, prompting questions from Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., and renewed concern among supporters of the Make America Healthy Again movement.
The awards include $505.3 million for adult COVID-19 vaccines and $735.7 million for pediatric doses intended for fiscal years 2026 and 2027, according to a LifeSiteNews report.
Johnson responded by sending a letter requesting information from Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., acting CDC Director Jay Bhattacharya and acting Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Kyle Diamantas.
“The safety issues with the COVID-19 injections that the Subcommittee has uncovered so far should have raised serious concerns at HHS and CDC about the mRNA COVID-19 injections,” Johnson wrote. “Instead, CDC’s reported awarding of approximately $1.24 billion in new contracts to Pfizer for a vaccine linked to serious adverse events—including potentially the deaths of children—suggests CDC continues to fail to take its vaccine safety responsibilities seriously.”
The contracts have also created a political challenge for Republicans seeking to maintain support among voters aligned with the MAHA agenda, particularly those who remain skeptical of federal COVID-19 vaccine policy.
Donald Slaughter, writing in The Hill, argued that Republican candidates could face electoral consequences if voters believe the administration has failed to follow through on promises to reconsider vaccine policy.
“As of spring 2026, uptake for the COVID-19 vaccine was quite low. Nine percent of children were getting it and 17 percent of adults. Only 3 percent of parents plan to have it given to their children,” Slaughter wrote.
Slaughter also cited KFF polling on MAHA voters and the issues influencing their choices in the November elections.
“A recent KFF poll found that among MAHA-supporting voters, 56 percent say health care costs will heavily influence which party’s candidate they support in November,” Slaughter wrote. “About four in ten say the same of vaccine policy. These are not insignificant voters; in competitive districts, they may represent the winning margin.”
He warned that dissatisfaction could reinforce a “narrative that the Republican establishment has capitulated to Big Pharma, that reformers have been neutralized, and that the MAHA coalition was useful during the campaign but expendable in government.”
The contracts arrive amid an ongoing dispute over reports of adverse events submitted after COVID-19 vaccination. The federal Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System, or VAERS, accepts reports from patients, medical professionals, vaccine manufacturers and others, but the reports do not independently establish that a vaccine caused a reported injury or death.
Data compiled by OpenVAERS listed 39,182 reported deaths, 222,828 hospitalizations, 22,549 heart attacks and 29,245 cases of myocarditis or pericarditis as of June 26.
Because VAERS is an early-warning system, its reports can contain incomplete information, coincidental medical events or cases that require additional investigation. Researchers nevertheless use the system to identify patterns that may warrant closer review.
A 2022 study involving CDC researchers examined reported myocarditis cases following mRNA COVID-19 vaccination and described a “high verification rate of reports of myocarditis to VAERS after mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccination.” The researchers stated that “under-reporting is more likely” than over-reporting for the cases assessed.
Myocarditis, an inflammation of the heart muscle, and pericarditis, an inflammation of the tissue surrounding the heart, have been identified as rare adverse events associated with mRNA vaccination, particularly among adolescent and young adult males.
Broader international research has continued to examine other potential safety signals. An analysis involving 99 million people in eight countries and published in the journal Vaccine reported significantly elevated observed-versus-expected rates for myocarditis following multiple doses of mRNA vaccines.
The researchers also identified signals involving pericarditis, Guillain-Barré syndrome and cerebral venous sinus thrombosis. They described those findings as potential safety signals requiring additional investigation rather than proof that vaccination caused every reported condition.
Questions have also been raised about information collected through the CDC’s V-safe monitoring system. In April 2024, the agency released approximately 780,000 free-text reports following a court order.
Other research cited by vaccine critics includes a Japanese study examining cancer mortality after third mRNA vaccine doses. The study reported statistically significant increases in several categories of cancer deaths and discussed possible explanations, though such observational findings do not, by themselves, establish a causal relationship.
More recent papers discussed by LifeSiteNews have explored possible associations with kidney and respiratory conditions. Those reports referenced studies published in the International Journal of Infectious Diseases and the International Journal of Medical Sciences that examined kidney injury and respiratory disease following vaccination.
In addition to medical concerns, some religious and pro-life Americans object to COVID-19 vaccines because fetal cell lines derived decades ago were used during certain stages of development, testing or production.
A review published by the Charlotte Lozier Institute states that Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson used abortion-derived cell lines during laboratory testing. Johnson & Johnson also used such cells during design, development and production, according to the institute.
The use of fetal cell lines in vaccine research has also been described by the journal Science and examined by Snopes. The vaccines themselves do not contain fetal tissue, but opponents argue that the historical connection creates a moral objection to their use.
Republican divisions over COVID-19 vaccination are complicated by President Donald Trump’s role in Operation Warp Speed, the federal initiative that accelerated vaccine development, manufacturing and distribution during his first administration.
The vaccines were developed and authorized in a far shorter period than earlier vaccines, though health authorities have argued that the accelerated timeline was made possible by prior coronavirus research, overlapping clinical trial phases, extensive funding and rapid regulatory review rather than the elimination of testing requirements.
Medical experts have also addressed claims that the process was improperly rushed, with Nebraska Medicine publishing an explanation of the development timeline.
Trump has continued to defend Operation Warp Speed and has declined to disavow the vaccines, even as many Republican voters and several officials in his second administration have criticized federal vaccine mandates, recommendations and safety oversight.
The administration has taken several steps to reduce federal support for broad COVID-19 vaccination. It has revised or withdrawn certain emergency recommendations while leaving the vaccines available to patients who choose to receive them.
Federal health officials have increasingly focused recommendations on people considered at higher risk of serious illness from COVID-19 rather than endorsing routine vaccination across all age groups.
Kennedy has also moved to cancel or reduce federal funding for some mRNA vaccine projects, indicating that the administration does not intend to support new contracts for certain next-generation programs.
That position has not satisfied critics who want existing COVID-19 vaccines removed from the market or subjected to broader safety reviews.
Former FDA Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary, who has since left the agency, asked critics during a July 2025 interview to give the administration more time to conduct comprehensive trials and obtain stronger evidence.
Makary acknowledged knowing people who believed they had been injured by COVID-19 vaccines while continuing to defend the original authorization decisions.
The FDA has reportedly begun acknowledging cases involving pediatric deaths that officials determined were linked to vaccination.
At the same time, the Trump administration’s Justice Department has opposed reviving a whistleblower lawsuit against Pfizer, adding to criticism that the administration’s legal posture does not fully align with the expectations of vaccine-skeptical supporters.
The FDA also confirmed in February that it would review Moderna’s application involving an experimental mRNA influenza vaccine. The decision reversed an earlier rejection after reported intervention by Trump.
The combined developments reflect the conflicting pressures surrounding the administration’s vaccine policy. Federal officials have narrowed recommendations and reduced support for some future mRNA research while continuing to purchase existing Pfizer vaccines for adults and children.
Johnson’s inquiry seeks to determine how the CDC justified the contracts, what safety evidence officials reviewed, how many doses the government expects to purchase and whether the awards are consistent with the administration’s stated commitment to greater transparency and scrutiny of federal vaccine programs.
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