Moderna downsizing investments in late-stage vaccine trials amid U.S. skepticism
Pharmaceutical company Moderna says it is scaling down its investments in late-stage vaccine trials amid growing opposition to immunizations from U.S. officials.
Moderna, the pharmaceutical company behind one of the first widely used COVID-19 vaccines, says it is pulling back on investments in late-stage vaccine trials, a move that comes as federal health policy shifts and vaccine skepticism gains influence at the highest levels of the U.S. government.
The decision, confirmed last week by Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel, underscores how political headwinds are reshaping the vaccine marketplace. Growing opposition to immunizations among U.S. officials, coupled with regulatory delays, is shrinking demand and forcing companies to rethink which products they can afford to push across the finish line.
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a longtime vaccine skeptic, has openly called for sweeping changes to U.S. vaccine policy. Those include dropping COVID-19 shot recommendations for pregnant women and children, encouraging states to limit vaccine mandates, and cutting federal funding for mRNA-based vaccine research.
In an interview with Bloomberg TV on Thursday, Bancel said those policy signals matter. Regulatory uncertainty and a lack of government support, he argued, make it harder to justify expensive late-stage trials, particularly for vaccines aimed at infectious and latent diseases.
Moderna clarified to me that the pullback does not apply across the board. According to company officials, infectious disease vaccines, including programs for Epstein-Barr virus, may be delayed or paused without outside funding. By contrast, oncology programs such as Moderna’s melanoma mRNA vaccine are moving ahead as planned.
Beyond COVID-19, Moderna’s infectious disease pipeline has spanned a wide range of vaccines aimed at populations that are often hard to protect and historically underfunded, which is why company executives say the pullback could have uneven consequences. Programs that have been slowed, paused, or are now dependent on external funding include:
Next-generation COVID-19 vaccines, designed to provide broader and longer-lasting protection, primarily affecting older adults, immunocompromised people, pregnant women, and children who remain at higher risk of severe disease.
Seasonal influenza and combined flu-COVID vaccines, intended for the general population but especially critical for seniors, people with chronic conditions, and frontline workers who face repeated exposure each winter.
Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) follow-on studies and pediatric programs, which would have benefited infants, young children, and older adults, groups that account for the bulk of RSV hospitalizations and deaths.
Latent virus vaccines, including those targeting cytomegalovirus and Epstein–Barr virus, aimed at protecting pregnant women, transplant recipients, cancer patients, and others vulnerable to lifelong complications such as congenital infections, autoimmune disease, and certain cancers.
Outbreak and emerging threat vaccines, such as those for norovirus, mpox, and other pathogens with epidemic or pandemic potential, which disproportionately affect children, people in congregate settings, and communities with limited access to health care.
Taken together, the slowdown does not eliminate existing protections, but it narrows the pipeline for future vaccines that would have primarily served people at the margins of the health system, the very groups public health agencies have long struggled to shield from infectious disease.