Senators from both parties are urging the Trump administration to release congressionally appropriated funds to a global vaccine group called Gavi.
The group, which includes Senate Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), said, “[Gavi] plays a critical role in averting the spread of preventable diseases around the globe and helps protect public health in our country by stopping outbreaks before they reach our borders.”
Congress allocated $300 million to the State Department for Gavi for fiscal years 2025 and 2026, for a total of $600 million.
“We urge you to quickly provide the U.S. contribution to Gavi, consistent with Congressional intent, to ensure U.S. leadership continues in global vaccination efforts,” Collins, Murray, and Sens. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), and Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) said in a May 4 letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
A State Department spokesperson declined to comment in an email to The Epoch Times, beyond saying that the Trump administration has made its position on Gavi clear.
Rubio was not asked about the matter during a press conference at the White House on May 5.
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced in 2025 that U.S. officials would not fund Gavi over allegations that the group was neglecting vaccine safety.
Kennedy said in January that it was because the group had not committed to phasing out vaccines containing thimerosal, a mercury-based preservative.
“Gavi has refused to provide the United States with the specific data, studies, or detailed accounting of how U.S. funds are used, and has declined to develop a plan to phase out thimerosal-containing vaccines despite a formal request,” Andrew Nixon, a spokesperson for the Department of Health and Human Services, told The Epoch Times via email. “As a result, the United States will withhold new funding and pause access to … financing until these concerns are addressed.”
“Secretary Kennedy has made clear that global health decisions must be grounded in transparent evidence and open scientific debate,” he said. “The United States is calling on Gavi to address these issues and strengthen public trust; until then, U.S. financial contributions will remain paused.”
A Gavi spokesperson did not return a request for comment.
The United States has provided $8 billion since 2001 to Gavi, and the House Appropriations Committee recently cleared a bill that would provide an additional $300 million during the upcoming fiscal year.
Shaheen, during a Senate hearing in April, asked Kennedy about the hold-up in providing the $600 million in funds to Gavi, saying she understood that he was personally holding up the money. She said Gavi representatives told her that if the funding was not released, “millions of children” would die.
Kennedy said that the administration has been in discussions with Gavi and that it had refused to answer whether U.S. funding was being funneled to the World Health Organization, from which the United States withdrew.
He also said that Gavi is using a vaccine against diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis that causes severe side effects and has been discontinued in a number of countries, and he said that Gavi will not use an updated version of the shot that is safer.
Shaheen asked whether Kennedy would be willing to appoint somebody from his office to work with her to resolve the issues, and he said yes.