Gov. Gretchen Whitmer directs state agencies to promote COVID-19 vaccine access

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is instructing state agencies to review and remove barriers to COVID-19 vaccine access and to keep the shots covered by insurance
The directive comes ahead of a meeting of a federal advisory committee that’s expected to roll back recommendations for childhood vaccines
The recently fired director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention told senators Wednesday shifting federal policy on vaccines is sidestepping science

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is directing state agencies to encourage vaccine use in Michigan as the public health community braces for a rollback of federal recommendations for childhood immunizations and the COVID-19 shot.

“Cold, flu, and COVID-19 season are upon us. We all have a role to play in keeping our communities safe and healthy,” said Whitmer in a Wednesday statement. “According to medical experts, vaccines remain the most effective way to stay healthy. I’m committed to providing Michiganders with the best options for their families. Let’s keep working together to protect our families and ourselves.”

Whitmer’s directive comes ahead of a pivotal meeting Thursday and Friday of the federal Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, or ACIP. The group is expected to propose recommendations for measles, mumps, rubella and varicella (chickenpox), hepatitis B and COVID-19 vaccines.

The executive directive instructs the Department of Insurance and Financial Services and the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs to work “collaboratively” with pharmacies, health care providers and the general public to “ensure that COVID-19 vaccines are available to Michiganders who wish to access them.”

Agencies should issue “clear, accessible guidance to providers, pharmacists, and the public regarding the safety and efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines for all appropriate populations,” Whitmer’s directive says.

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It also instructs agencies to identify, review and remove barriers to vaccine access, and to ensure “to the extent possible” that the state’s various health insurance providers continue to cover COVID-19 shots.

It remains unclear how the departments will issue “clear, accessible guidance” for the immunizations.

On Monday, US Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. appointed an additional five members to the vaccine advisory board — after culling all 17 ACIP previous members in June and naming eight replacements, one of whom has since left. The panel’s newest members have supported bans on vaccine mandates, promoted alternative and unproven treatments for COVID and authored research papers casting doubt on the mRNA vaccine.

This week’s meeting could determine continued coverage of the shots under the free Vaccines for Children Program and other insurance providers, while triggering policy changes in various states and territories that reference the group’s recommendations.

In remarks to Bridge Michigan this month, Dr. Natasha Bagdasrian, the state’s chief medical officer, said ACIP’s forthcoming decision could have broad impact.

“If they change their guidance on COVID-19, it is possible that people will see a change in health insurance coverage of COVID vaccine,” Bagdasrian said.

The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services said in late July that it continues to recommend COVID-19 vaccines for everyone 6 months and older. Just a month later, the US Food and Drug Administration authorized an updated COVID vaccine, but restricted its use to people 65 and older or at high risk for severe outcomes from COVID infection.

‘Very nervous’

The Trump administration’s reversal in promoting the COVID-19 vaccine has caused upheaval at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Fired CDC director Susan Monarez testified before Congress on Wednesday that her 29-day stay in the position ended after disagreements with Kennedy on vaccine policy.

“He directed me to commit in advance to approving every ACIP recommendation regardless of the scientific evidence,” Monarez told senators. “He also directed me to dismiss career officials responsible for vaccine policy without cause.”

Monarez said she is “very nervous” about the upcoming vaccine advisory panel’s recommendations, raising concerns that the group poses a “real risk” in restricting vaccine access for children and others “without rigorous scientific review.” Without a permanent CDC director at the helm, she said, those recommendations could be adopted.

In Michigan, children who attend school or early child-care centers are required to have up-to-date vaccination records to protect against diseases like whooping cough, polio and measles unless they obtain a waiver. The state does not otherwise mandate vaccination, and COVID-19 immunization is not required for school entry.

The country’s leading medical organizations, including the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, the American Academy of Family Physicians and the American College of Physicians, have deemed the COVID-19 vaccine, along with the current schedule of childhood immunizations, safe and effective in combatting the worst effects of disease infection.