December 18, 2025
The organization is an outspoken critic of RFK Jr.’s federal vaccine agenda.
The Department of Health and Human Services has withdrawn millions in grant funding from the American Academy of Pediatrics following the organization’s criticism of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s policies.
On Dec. 17, it was revealed that HHS terminated seven grants worth millions of dollars awarded to the pediatric association, including funding for programs aimed at reducing sudden infant deaths, improving adolescent health, preventing fetal alcohol syndrome, and early identification of autism, The Washington Post reports. The organization, an outspoken critic of RFK Jr.’s federal vaccine agenda, was reportedly blindsided by the cuts and is weighing response options, including a potential legal challenge.
“This vital work spanned multiple child health priorities, including reducing sudden infant death, rural access to health care, mental health, adolescent health, supporting children with birth defects, early identification of autism, and prevention of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders, among other topics,” said Mark Del Monte, AAP’s chief executive and executive vice president.
“The sudden withdrawal of these funds will directly impact and potentially harm infants, children, youth, and their families in communities across the United States,” he added.
HHS said it cut funding to AAP over concerns about the use of “identity-based language,” such as references to racial disparities and “pregnant people,” and for what it described as an insufficient focus on nutrition and chronic disease prevention. Spokesman Andrew Nixon said the grants, along with others to separate organizations, were canceled because they no longer aligned with the department’s mission or priorities.
One termination letter for a CDC grant on birth defects and infant disorders cited language in the grant materials as not aligned with current CDC and HHS priorities.
“These elements are not incidental; they are woven through the title, narrative and work plans of your organization’s award project and define your organization’s project’s objective framework,” Jamie Legier, director of CDC’s office of grants services, reportedly wrote in the letter. “As such, your organization’s activities under [award number] are no longer in alignment with the stated HHS and CDC priority areas.”
If the AAP pursues legal action over the grant cuts, it would not be its first lawsuit tied to its public clash with RFK Jr. The group previously sued HHS over Kennedy’s vaccine policy changes after he removed COVID-19 vaccines from the CDC’s recommended schedule for healthy children and pregnant women, departing from long-standing guidance.
In June, AAP President Susan J. Kressly said the organization would not support a system “being politicized at the expense of children’s health.” After the AAP issued its own vaccine recommendations, Kennedy questioned on X whether the guidance served public health interests or pharmaceutical backers. The grant funding appears to be the latest development in the ongoing battle.
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