Gov. JB Pritzker has joined a public health coalition of Democratic governors to counter the Trump administration’s efforts to dismantle the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, slash Medicaid and undermine vaccines.
The Governors Public Alliance is intended to protect states from the federal government’s “war on science,” vaccine misinformation and cuts to healthcare for millions of Americans, according to Pritzker’s office. The alliance will serve as a cross-state liaison with the global health community and will help facilitate collaboration to share best practices, elevate national considerations for procuring vaccines and develop policies.
“Public health should never be politicized. While Donald Trump and [Health and Human Services Secretary] RFK Jr. turn the CDC into a misinformation machine and rip healthcare away from working families, I am proud to join my fellow Governors in stepping up to protect our residents,” Pritzker said in a statement. “When the federal government abandons science for conspiracy theories, slashes Medicaid, and undermines vaccine integrity, states must stand united to defend the facts.”
Pritzker said he’d “continue to put science and our people first.”
Pritzker joins Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson, Hawaii Gov. Josh Green, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek, Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont, Rhode Island Gov. Dan McKee, Delaware Gov. Matt Meyer, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, California Gov. Gavin Newsom, Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healy, North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein and Guam Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero in the newly formed coalition.
The Illinois governor last month signed an executive order that aims to protect COVID-19 vaccine access in the state amid increased barriers to the shots nationwide under Robert F. Kennedy Jr. The order also encompasses other routine vaccinations including flu, RSV, polio, measles and more.
Under Kennedy, a longtime vaccine skeptic, the federal Food and Drug Administration has approved the latest version of the COVID-19 vaccine, but only for people 65 or older or who have unspecified high-risk medical conditions.
With consultation from the state’s Immunization Advisory Committee, Pritzker’s order would make it easier for people to get the shot outside the FDA’s limited recommendations. Pritzker’s order also calls for the state health agency to create a plan to continue to provide free vaccines for children who receive them through a federally funded program known as Vaccines for Children if there is federal disruption to it.
The CDC last week dropped the universal COVID-19 vaccine recommendation, signing off on the recommendations made in September by the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices. The CDC also is now recommending that toddlers receive the chickenpox shot separately from the measles, mumps and rubella shot.
“Informed consent is back,” acting director of the CDC and Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Services Jim O’Neill said in announcing the vaccine changes.
Pritzker in May also signed an executive order to restrict the mass collection and sharing of autism-related data for Illinois residents. The governor’s office said the executive order was in response to rising concerns about efforts to create federal autism registries or databases without legal safeguards or accountability. Illinois became the first state to formally restrict the collection or sharing of autism-related data absent legal or medical necessity.