Overview
- California and Arizona are leading a federal lawsuit in the Northern District of California on behalf of 13 other states and Pennsylvania’s governor to overturn recent CDC vaccine guidance.
- The challenge targets a Jan. 5, 2026 CDC Decision Memo that removed universal recommendations for seven vaccines, including those for rotavirus, meningococcal disease, hepatitis A and B, influenza, COVID-19, and RSV.
- The suit also contests HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s dismissal and replacement of the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, alleging violations of the Federal Advisory Committee Act and insufficient expertise among appointees.
- Defendants include HHS, the CDC, Kennedy, and CDC Director Jay Bhattacharya, with parallel litigation by the American Academy of Pediatrics and other medical groups still pending and no court rulings yet.
- HHS defends the policy shift as consistent with international practice and centered on shared clinical decision-making, while state officials warn of lower vaccination rates, greater outbreak risk, and higher state healthcare costs.