From The Oklahoman 10/10/25:
Crusade against mRNA technology puts lives, US security at risk | Opinion
mRNA vaccines are neither dangerous nor untested. They are among the most important medical advancements in recent history.
Sally C. Pipes, Guest columnist
"The United States is turning its back on what could be the greatest medical advance in a generation — vaccines made with messenger RNA, or mRNA, technology.
"The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced in August that it is canceling nearly half a billion dollars' worth of grants and contracts across 22 different mRNA development projects funded through the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority.
"For the sake of people suffering today, as well as future generations to come, we must change course — and embrace mRNA technology.
"Fortunately, Congress may make that happen. Early September, the House Appropriations Committee passed legislation that would direct $1.1 billion toward continued mRNA vaccine research.
"Most first heard about mRNA during the COVID-19 pandemic, when researchers used it to develop precision vaccines for the novel coronavirus. The technology is currently showing promise against all sorts of devastating diseases and conditions, from cancer and cystic fibrosis to food allergies.
"Although mRNA vaccines seemed to come out of nowhere in 2020, the technology has been in development for over a decade. President Donald Trump's Operation Warp Speed enabled the COVID vaccines to reach patients in record time.
"While those vaccines didn't control the virus's spread as well as initially hoped, they proved highly effective at preventing the severe illness and death. Researchers estimate that the shots saved millions of lives between 2020 and 2024, particularly among the elderly.
"Unfortunately, the COVID vaccines have been casualties of the ongoing fight over pandemic-era policies like extended school closures, masking and vaccine mandates.
"The lingering frustration of many Americans with pandemic-era restrictions on behavior is understandable, even justified. But acting on that frustration by embracing Luddism vis-a-vis mRNA vaccines is foolish — and will harm humanity in the long run.
"Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the secretary of Health and Human Services, has defended the cancelation of the mRNA money by claiming that "the data show these vaccines fail to protect effectively against upper respiratory infections like COVID and flu." He has also insisted that, "After reviewing the science and consulting top experts at NIH and FDA, HHS has determined that mRNA technology poses more risk than benefits against these respiratory viruses."
"All the available evidence suggests the opposite. Study after study has found that the COVID vaccines have averted millions of deaths. Exhaustive research from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that COVID vaccines carried no increased risk of death.
"By casting doubt about the effectiveness and promise of mRNA technology, the secretary is slowing progress toward highly effective therapies that could eradicate any number of deadly diseases in the near future.
"At last count, there have been over 120 clinical trials showing mRNA technology's potential to use the body's own immune system to fight cancers of the breast, prostate, and other malignancies. And there continues to be progress toward mRNA therapies for diseases such as tuberculosis, sickle cell anemia, and even heart attack and stroke.
"The cost to U.S. national security is equally troubling. This new generation of vaccines is widely considered one of our most powerful deterrents against bioterrorist attacks. Chris Meekins, who served in the first Trump administration as a deputy assistant secretary for pandemic preparedness, said this funding cut "could put the U.S. at a strategic national security disadvantage and would be a significant threat to the national security of the United States."
"If the United States isn't interested in taking the lead on this game-changing new approach to vaccines, our technological competitors — most notably China — will show no such compunction. China has been working for years to unseat the United States as the world's top source of life sciences innovation.
"mRNA vaccines are neither dangerous nor untested. They are among the most important medical advancements in recent history. And they could hold the key to tackling countless chronic conditions for which effective treatments and cures have long been elusive.
"Unilaterally shuttering research in this area will lead to untold avoidable suffering and death — while leaving our nation less safe, less secure and less technologically competitive."
Sally C. Pipes is president, CEO and Thomas W. Smith Fellow in Health Care Policy at the Pacific Research Institute. Follow her on X @sallypipes.
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