(Bloomberg) -- Donald Trump’s administration will likely support global immunization efforts, even though his proposed secretary of health and human services has voiced skepticism about such initiatives, according to the head of an organization that helps to vaccinate more than half of the world’s children.
Sania Nishtar, chief executive officer of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, said she’s hopeful that the bipartisan support the group received during Trump’s previous term as US president will carry through to his next four years.
“I’m cautiously optimistic that work will continue,” Nishtar said in an interview with Bloomberg TV.
Under President Joe Biden, the US in June pledged at least $1.58 billion to support Gavi over the next five years. For Trump’s administration to prevent that funding from coming through, Congress would need to block it.
Nishtar’s optimism comes despite Trump’s choice of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for the health and human services role. Kennedy has expressed anti-vaccine sentiment, including supporting debunked beliefs that vaccines are linked to autism. Kennedy has said that Covid-19 shots were a “crime against humanity” and compared them to the Nazi Holocaust. Shares of vaccine developers dropped in the wake of Trump’s pick as investors weighed the cost of Kennedy’s potential appointment.
Both Republicans and Democrats in Congress have in the past been supportive of organizations like Gavi, which works to ensure that children in the world’s poorest countries are vaccinated. It’s that support that Nishtar is counting on again. Although the new administration might be critical of the pharmaceutical industry, Nishtar said she expects to have “evidence-based conversations” with incoming health leaders.
“Vaccines are the best buy in public health,” she said, and Gavi hopes US politicians will be swayed by the financial as well as health benefits. A billion children have been vaccinated since Gavi’s inception, averting close to 19 million deaths and providing around $200 billion in economic gain, she said.
Gavi is currently replenishing its coffers, calling for $9 billion in funding between 2026 and 2030. Several countries including the US and France have already pledged support, but Gavi is still waiting for promises from large donors like the UK and Germany.
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