Vaccine policy shifts and clinical breakthroughs: Key updates for the week ending July 1, 2025

The main news on vaccines this week centers on several significant policy changes, clinical trial results, and developments in the U.S. and global vaccine policy landscape that touch on these controversies.  Key Vaccine News This Week (ending July 1, 2025):  COVID-19 Vaccination Policy Shifts:  The UK government has accepted the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) advice for the autumn 2025 COVID-19 vaccination program. The focus is now on the most vulnerable: adults aged 75+, care home residents, and immunosuppressed individuals. Frontline health and social care workers will not be eligible unless they fall into a vulnerable group, reflecting a shift as population immunity is now high1.  In the U.S., the CDC has stopped recommending COVID-19 vaccines for pregnant women and healthy children, reversing earlier guidance. This move has drawn criticism from real medical experts, who warn it could undermine maternal and neonatal health and public trust in vaccination2. This heralds the end of the...