Amish Families in New York Lose Religious Vaccine Exemption Case
On June 30, 2026, the U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against a group of Amish families for the second time upholding New York state’s elimination of the religious exemption to school vaccine requirements. The families now face more than $118,000 in fines for noncompliance with the state’s mandate.1 New York legislatures voted to […]
Merck Settles Gardasil Vaccine Injury Lawsuit for $50 Million
Merck & Co has agreed to pay $50 million to settle more than 200 lawsuits brought against the drug giant by patients suffering from autoimmune disorders after receiving the Gardasil vaccine. According Merck, this settlement resolves all but one of the pending lawsuits filed against its HPV vaccine.1 Gardasil was fast-tracked to licensure by the […]
Former Aide to Anthony Fauci Indicted for Concealing COVID-19 Records
On Apr. 16, 2026, a federal grand jury in Maryland indicted David M. Morens on charges that he conspired to conceal government records from the public during the COVID-19 pandemic. Morens, 78, served as senior adviser to the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) from 2006 to 2022, working directly […]
West Virginia Vaccine Mandate Upheld by U.S. Fourth Circuit
On Apr. 8, 2026, a federal appeals court found that West Virginia’s compulsory school vaccination law does not violate the First Amendment, despite the state not offering a religious exemption. In a 2-1 decision, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit reversed a preliminary injunction that had temporarily allowed a virtual school student […]
CDC’s Childhood Vaccine Schedule Changes Blocked by Massachusetts Court
A federal judge in the United States District Court for Massachusetts blocked a January 2026 memorandum that overhauled the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) childhood vaccine schedule. The court also stayed the appointment of thirteen members of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) and invalidated votes taken by the committee while the […]
AAP Sued for Allegedly Misleading Public About Safety of Childhood Vaccines
The non-profit Children’s Health Defense (CHD) and several individual plaintiffs filed a civil lawsuit against the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. The complaint alleges that AAP engaged in a coordinated and long-running scheme to mislead families and physicians about the safety of the childhood vaccine schedule. The […]