{"id":6635,"date":"2025-09-04T07:21:52","date_gmt":"2025-09-04T07:21:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/forefrontnews.cn\/?p=6635"},"modified":"2025-09-04T07:21:52","modified_gmt":"2025-09-04T07:21:52","slug":"washington-oregon-and-california-governors-form-alliance-in-rebuke-of-trump-administration","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/forefrontnews.cn\/?p=6635","title":{"rendered":"Washington, Oregon and California governors form alliance in rebuke of Trump administration"},"content":{"rendered":"

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The Democratic governors of Washington state, Oregon and California announced Wednesday that they have created an alliance to establish their own recommendations for who should receive vaccines because they believe the Trump administration is putting Americans\u2019 health at risk\u00a0by politicizing<\/a><\/span>\u00a0the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.<\/p>\n

The announcement came the same day that\u00a0Florida<\/a><\/span>\u00a0said it will phase out all childhood vaccine mandates. Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis plans to\u00a0curb vaccine requirements<\/a><\/span>\u00a0and other health mandates that evolved during the COVID-19 pandemic in his state.<\/p>\n

The differing responses come as COVID-19 cases rise and as Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has\u00a0restructured and downsized<\/a><\/span>\u00a0the CDC and attempted to advance\u00a0anti-vaccine policies<\/a><\/span>\u00a0that are contradicted by decades of scientific research. Concerns about staffing and budget cuts were heightened after the White House sought to\u00a0oust<\/a><\/span> the agency\u2019s director and some top CDC leaders resigned in protest.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe CDC has become a political tool that increasingly peddles ideology instead of science, ideology that will lead to severe health consequences,\u201d the governors said in a joint statement.<\/p>\n

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\u201cThe dismantling of public health and dismissal of experienced and respected health leaders and advisers, along with the lack of using science, data, and evidence to improve our nation\u2019s health are placing lives at risk,\u201d California State Health Officer Erica Pan said in the news release.<\/p>\n

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Washington state Health Secretary Dennis Worsham said public health is about \u201cpreventing illness, preventing the spread of disease, and preventing early, avoidable deaths.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cVaccines are among the most powerful tools in modern medicine; they have indisputably saved millions of lives,\u201d Oregon Health Director Sejal Hathi said. \u201cBut when guidance about their use becomes inconsistent or politicized, it undermines public trust at precisely the moment we need it most.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Partnership seeks expert medical advice<\/h2>\n

The three states plan to coordinate their vaccine recommendations and immunization plans based on science-based evidence from respected national medical organizations, according to a joint statement from Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson, Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek and California Gov. Gavin Newsom.<\/p>\n

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services spokesman Andrew G. Nixon shot back in a statement Wednesday that \u201cDemocrat-run states that pushed unscientific school lockdowns, toddler mask mandates, and draconian vaccine passports during the COVID era completely eroded the American people\u2019s trust in public health agencies.\u201d<\/p>\n

He said the administration\u2019s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices \u201cremains the scientific body guiding immunization recommendations in this country, and HHS will ensure policy is based on rigorous evidence and Gold Standard Science, not the failed politics of the pandemic.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Public health agencies across nation start vaccine efforts<\/h2>\n

Meanwhile, public health agencies across the country have started taking steps to ensure their states have access to vaccines after\u00a0U.S. regulators<\/a><\/span>\u00a0came out with new policies that limited access to COVID-19 shots.<\/p>\n

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker\u2019s health department said last week it is seeking advice from medical experts and its own committee on COVID-19 vaccines and other immunizations for the fall respiratory season.<\/p>\n

The health department plans to provide residents \u201cwith specific guidance by the end of September to help Illinois health care providers and residents make informed decisions about vaccination and protecting themselves and their loved ones,\u201d Health Director Sameer Vohra said in a statement.<\/p>\n

New Mexico said it was updating its protocols to allow the state\u2019s pharmacists to consider recommendations from the state\u2019s health department when administering vaccines rather than just the federal Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis order will remove obstacles to vaccination access\u201d when it goes into effect by the end of next month, Health Secretary Gina DeBlassie said in a statement.<\/p>\n

On Wednesday, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said at his request, the State Board of Pharmacy voted to protect access to COVID-19 vaccines for those most in need and make it available at CVS pharmacies across the state.<\/p>\n

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\u201cHealth care decisions should be up to individuals \u2014 not the federal government and certainly not RFK Jr.\u201d Shapiro said in a statement. \u201cMy administration will continue to protect health care access for all Pennsylvanians.\u201d<\/p>\n

Colorado Gov. Jared Polis has directed health officials to ensure access to updated COVID-19 vaccines. The state\u2019s Chief Medical Officer Dr. Ned Calonge issued an order to allow pharmacists to provide COVID-19 vaccines without individual prescriptions. The order takes effect on Friday.<\/p>\n

Last month, public officials from eight Northeast states met in Rhode Island to discuss coordinating vaccine recommendations. The group included all the New England states except for New Hampshire, as well as New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.<\/p>\n

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Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey, a Democrat who has been critical of federal cuts to public health funding and restrictions on vaccines, said her state was leading the bipartisan coalition.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re going to make sure that people get the vaccines they need \u2014 no matter what the Trump Administration does,\u201d she said in a statement.<\/p>\n

A spokesperson for the Connecticut Department of Public Health said Wednesday that cross-border meetings \u201care nothing new.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPublic health challenges extend beyond state lines, making collaboration essential for effective response and prevention efforts,\u201d the agency said in a statement. Last month\u2019s meetings allowed the states to \u201cshare numerous public health best strategies to meet the needs of our states at a time of federal health restructuring and cuts.\u201d<\/p>\n

States have come together before<\/h2>\n

The West Coast Alliance isn\u2019t the first time Democratic-led states have banded together to coordinate policies related to public health.<\/p>\n

In the first months of the coronavirus pandemic, states formed regional alliances\u00a0to gain buying power<\/a><\/span>\u00a0for respirators, gloves and other personal protective equipment for frontline workers and to\u00a0coordinate reopening<\/a><\/span>\u00a0their largely shuttered economies.<\/p>\n

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Governors in the Northeast and West Coast \u2014 all but one of them Democrats \u2014 announced separate regional groups in 2020 hours after Trump said on social media that it would be his decision when to \u201copen up the states.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Associated Press writers Geoff Mulvihill in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, and Susan Haigh in Hartford, Connecticut, contributed to this report.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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