NPR has learned, from more than one source at the CDC, that the $Rump administration and the Department of Health and Human Services led by RFK Jr. told them to stop the paid flu vaccine campaign. As you can see above, people were encouraged to get the vaccine so that any flu they might catch would be as mild as a kitten.
The Trump administration's decision to pull the campaign comes in the midst of a brutal flu season that's still raging. More than 50,000 patients were admitted to hospitals for influenza during the week ending Feb. 8, the highest level in 15 years.
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The campaign sought to "reset public expectations around what a flu vaccine can do in the event that it does not entirely prevent illness," according to the CDC's webpage describing the launch of the campaign in 2023. It was renewed for the current flu season.
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"The CDC campaign is a creative and effective way of conveying an extremely important public health message about 'partial protection' vs. 'complete prevention' of disease," Marla Dalton, executive director of the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases, told NPR in an email.
Typically ad campaigns for vaccination last throughout the flu season and are available online indefinitely afterward. However, all these materials have been erased from the CDC website.
So maybe this is $Rump and Musk saving money. But you, I, and all of us know their proclivities when it comes to vaccines, especially the RF “I never said I was against vaccines” Kennedy Jr anti-vaxxer.
Images created by the government and paid for by our taxes are typically in the public domain. In addition, there are multiple previous CDC statements indicating that this is an image meant to be widely shared. I have screenshots of those statements and downloads where available.
So please, freely share the message. Let’s do what $Rump and RFKJr don’t want to pay to do.
Or, you know, don’t share. Because they might get annoyed. And we sure don’t want that! ;-)
