Supporters of Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. are pressing for a fight for the U.S. vaccine overhaul their "Make America Healthy Again" movement helped create.
But two weeks after a court ruling halted key aspects of the vaccine revamp, the Trump administration has not taken any steps to appeal, a delay longer than for other cases where President Trump has aggressively fought federal rulings challenging his agenda.
To move quickly on an appeal, the DOJ could have preemptively asked Boston-based U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy to put the ruling on hold, a tactic it has used in other cases. It could also have asked Murphy to reconsider his order or move to appeal the decision to the 1st Circuit, a precursor to pursuing any further appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. It can still appeal under a 60-day window.
George Washington University law professor Sara Rosenbaum, a former vaccine committee member who filed a friend-of-the-court brief in support of the plaintiffs, said the lack of action was noteworthy. In other cases, the administration has been "kapow, turning around and filing your appeal before the ink was dry," she said.
The administration must balance the support of millions of Kennedy's MAHA backers, who were already upset by Trump's order to boost pesticide production, against low general public support for his vaccine agenda. MAHA is seen as an important constituency whose votes were key to Trump's win in the 2024 election.
Bo Erickson and Leah Douglas have more analysis here.
