The Minnesota Department of Health is encouraging COVID-19 vaccination for all people ages 6 months and older, endorsing recommendations from national medical associations rather than the federal government.
The three medical associations — the American Academy of Pediatrics, American Academy of Family Physicians and American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists — recommend that everyone 6 months or older receive the updated 2025-26 COVID-19 vaccine “without additional barriers.”
Additionally, the groups strongly recommend vaccination for those under 2, those who are 65 or older, those who are pregnant and people of any age with high-risk conditions.
“Vaccines are one of the greatest public health achievements in modern medicine and help protect people of all ages,” said Dr. Ruth Lynfield, MDH’s medical director and state epidemiologist. “We encourage people to talk to their health care provider about all of the vaccines that are recommended for them, especially flu, RSV and COVID-19 vaccines, right now as we enter the respiratory disease season.”
The state health department’s endorsement Monday of medical associations’ vaccine recommendations is a change from previous years. Historically, the department would endorse the federal government’s guidance, MDH said in its announcement.
“This is a unique moment where vaccine information from federal health leaders leaves important information gaps for Minnesotans,” said Dr. Brooke Cunningham, Minnesota’s health commissioner. “These independent medical associations have all looked at the science and concluded that COVID-19 vaccine is safe, effective and important for people across the lifespan.”
Last week, a key committee within the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended COVID-19 vaccination based on “individual decision-making.”
In August, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine for all adults age 65 and older, but approved it for people between the ages of 5 and 64 “with at least one underlying condition that puts them at high risk for severe outcomes from COVID-19.”
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U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was a longtime leader of Children’s Health Defense, an anti-vaccination nonprofit.
The MDH’s endorsement follows Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz’s Sept. 8 executive order that directed the state agency to safeguard access to the COVID-19 vaccine.
In its Sept. 22 announcement, MDH said it has issued a standing order that gives pharmacists broad permission to immunize people who desire the COVID-19 vaccine. It also sets up conversations between MDH, the Minnesota Department of Commerce and health insurers to “ensure ongoing coverage.”
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