On September 4, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced that it sent a letter to state awardees of the Vaccines for Children Program (VCP), stating that participating immunization programs and providers registered with the program must honor state religious and conscience exemptions from vaccine mandates.

The press release clarified that participation in the VCP, which offers lower-cost, publicly purchased vaccines for eligible children, requires compliance with state religious and other exemptions from vaccination laws. HHS provides operational funding to 61 state, local, and territorial immunization programs to implement and oversee their VCPs. State or local boards of education may manage or receive funds through the VCP.

“States have the authority to balance public health goals with individual freedom, and honoring those decisions builds trust. Protecting both public health and personal liberty is how we restore faith in our institutions and Make America Healthy Again,” HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., said in a statement.

Meanwhile, Secretary Kennedy has been under intense criticism over HHS’ vaccine policy, as our editor-in-chief Mark Hagland reported. During a hearing before the Senate Finance Committee, Kennedy faced very strong challenges from both Democratic and Republican senators, some of whom called on him to resign over issues related to vaccine policy and management.