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    RFK Jr.’s firing of CDC vaccine panel undermines science, could threaten public health, experts say

    Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has gutted a key government panel of vaccine advisors, a stunning move that some public health experts say undermines science, disrupts a trusted regulatory process, and could sow public distrust in vaccinations and federal health agencies.
    It is still unclear who will replace the current panel, but experts warn that Kennedy could try to appoint members who are sympathetic to his anti-vaccine views.
    Some experts say the firings could ultimately threaten public health, eroding already falling U.S. immunization rates against once-common childhood diseases and making the nation less equipped to grapple with new or existing outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases.

    U.S. Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. leaves the stage after discussing the findings of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) latest Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring (ADDM) Network survey, at the Department of Health and Human Services in Washington, D.C., U.S., April 16, 2025.
    Elizabeth Frantz | Reuters

    Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has gutted a key government panel of vaccine advisors, saying he wants to “re-establish public confidence” in shots.
    Some health policy experts say firing the committee members will do the opposite. 

    “Rather than restoring public trust, his actions are simply politicizing science and vaccine policy,” Lawrence Gostin, professor of public health law at Georgetown University, told CNBC. “I don’t know how it is possible to trust HHS anymore.”
    Gostin and other experts said the move undermines science, disrupts a trusted regulatory process for shots, and could increase public distrust in both vaccinations and federal health agencies. Some experts said the firings could threaten public health, eroding already falling U.S. immunization rates against once-common childhood diseases and making the nation less equipped to grapple with new or existing outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases.
    The potential impact on vaccine manufacturers like Moderna, Merck, Pfizer and BioNTech is less clear, but some analysts say it introduces more uncertainty to the regulatory process around shots. 
    Kennedy, a prominent vaccine skeptic, said Monday he is firing all 17 members of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, or ACIP, which advises the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The group of independent medical and public health experts reviews vaccine data and makes crucial recommendations that determine who is eligible for shots and whether insurers should cover them, among other efforts.
    It is the latest in a series of steps Kennedy has taken as head of HHS to dismantle decades of U.S. vaccination policy standards and chip away at the public’s confidence in immunizations. Among his most recent efforts, he dropped the CDC’s recommendation for routine Covid-19 vaccines for healthy children and healthy pregnant women, which also sparked outrage in the medical and science community.

    While it is unclear who will replace the current panel, some experts warn that Kennedy could try to appoint members who are sympathetic to his anti-vaccine views. That could lead to politicized recommendations that highlight the harms rather than the benefits of shots or make them widely voluntary, deterring more Americans from receiving shots or vaccinating their children, according to some experts. 
    “It’s really important that we recognize that these actions impact everyone,” Dr. Neil Maniar, a public health professor at Northeastern University, told CNBC. “This is not just a committee that was retired. It is a committee whose work has broad implications.”
    HHS did not immediately respond to a request for comment on who will be appointed to the panel, and the concerns from health policy experts.

    Kennedy’s ‘unfounded’ claims and what’s next

    HHS on Monday did not provide a timeline for when it will appoint new members. But the agency in a release said ACIP will still hold a planned meeting from June 25 to 27. A source familiar with the matter, who requested anonymity to speak freely, told CNBC on Monday that entirely new members will run that meeting.
    In an op-ed in The Wall Street Journal on Monday, Kennedy claimed that the current ACIP panel has been “plagued with persistent conflicts of interest and has become little more than a rubber stamp for any vaccine.”
    But those allegations are “completely unfounded” and will have a “significant negative impact on Americans of all ages,” Tina Tan, president of the Infectious Diseases Society of America, said in an emailed statement. 
    She said ACIP is a highly qualified group of experts that has “always operated with transparency and a commitment to protecting the public’s health.” 
    All HHS agencies and their advisory panels have also long had rigorous policies for conflicts of interest, and there have been no related issues for years. Members of federal vaccine advisory committees are already required to comply with regulations around disclosing potential conflicts of interest.
    “The secretary is using conflicts of interest as a ruse to ignore or cherry pick scientific evidence,” Gostin said. “ACIP members fully disclose all potential conflicts and excuse themselves from voting if there are any perceived conflicts.”

    Sherry Andrews prepares a MMR vaccine at the City of Lubbock Heath Department in Lubbock, Texas, U.S. Feb. 27, 2025. 
    Annie Rice | Reuters

    In a statement Tuesday, the American Academy of Physician Associates said it is “imperative that the administration acts promptly to reconstruct the committee through an open and transparent process that includes diverse provider voices,” including physician associates. 
    But Northeastern’s Maniar said he wouldn’t be surprised if Kennedy taps political appointees who share his views around vaccine science. 
    That could lead to recommendations that restrict who is eligible for different vaccinations or give much more leeway for individuals to decide whether to get immunized, Maniar said. He added that Kennedy’s restacked panel may want to take a longer period of time to vet certain vaccines before they become available, delaying the time it takes for them to reach patients. 
    “It is certainly within the realm of possibility that we will see lower vaccination rates as a result of this,” Maniar said.
    That could increase the risk of vaccine-preventable diseases spreading as the U.S. is already grappling with an unprecedented measles outbreak and is heading into a summer season of more travel and crowding, according to Maniar. The new panel’s recommendations will also be crucial for children as the nation approaches a new school year in the fall. 
    Kennedy’s decision contradicts a promise he made to Sen. Bill Cassidy, a Louisiana Republican and chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, during his confirmation hearings. Kennedy told Cassidy, who cast the deciding vote to advance his nomination through the committee at that time, that he would not alter ACIP.
    On Monday, Cassidy said in a post on X that the fear is now that “ACIP will be filled up with people who know nothing about vaccines except suspicion.” But he said he will continue to talk with Kennedy to “ensure this is not the case.”

    Impact on vaccine manufacturers

    New vaccine COMIRNATY® (COVID-19 Vaccine, mRNA) by Pfizer, now available at CVS Pharmacy in Eagle Rock, CA.
    Irfan Khan | Los Angeles Times | Getty Images

    Some Wall Street analysts also said the move is a risk to vaccine manufacturers, which depend on federal agencies like the Food and Drug Administration and the CDC to approve and recommend their products. 
    “At worst, the committee could upend current recommendations for [new] and existing vaccines,” Leerink Partners analyst Daina Graybosch said in a note Monday. But she noted that the firm can’t fully quantify the impact of the move before seeing who will replace the current panel.
    In a note Monday, BMO Capital Markets analyst Evan Seigerman said Kennedy’s decision is “a negative headwind” to vaccine manufacturers, as new appointees are likely to be more critical of future recommendations. 
    But he said he expects “most impacts to be broadly muted.” Seigerman pointed to Kennedy’s picks to lead the FDA and its division that regulates biological products, the Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, noting the ultimate selection for each seat did not reflect a “doomsday” scenario. 
    FDA Commissioner Marty Makary and CBER head Vinay Prasad have so far been “less negative for the sector than initially feared,” he said. 
    “While RFK Jr.’s commentary surrounding vaccines has been consistently critical, we believe this has been well established with realistic headwinds largely priced in by the market,” Seigerman said.

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    In China, fears grow of an EV financial crisis amid pricing war

    Electric vehicle makers in China, led by the country’s market leader BYD, have been engaged in a bruising price war.
    High-profile auto executives have sounded the alarm — with the head of Great Wall Motor calling the industry “unhealthy.”
    Used car sellers said they’re also worried about the effects on sales.

    At a used car market in Beijing, salesman Ma Hui said he fears China’s electric vehicle industry is in a race to the bottom.
    EV makers, led by the country’s market leader BYD, have been engaged in a bruising price war, depressing profits for the brands, as well as sellers such as Ma.

    “All of us were losing money last year,” Ma said about his fellow used car sellers in the market. “There are too many companies making too many new energy cars.”

    A BYD dealership in Beijing on June 4, 2025.

    China’s trading partners have often accused the country of flooding the global market with cheap Chinese EVs. These days, similar accusations are flying within China, raising concerns about financial stress in the industry.
    The official Communist Party paper, the People’s Daily, for example, published a commentary on Monday, titled “The ‘Price War’ In The Automotive Industry Leads Nowhere And Has No Future.”
    “Disorderly ‘price wars’ squeeze profits across the chain, impacting the entire ecosystem and risking income declines for workers,” the paper warned. “Long-term, this ‘race to the bottom’ competition is unsustainable.”

    Read more CNBC auto news

    BYD is drawing the most fire after it announced price cuts in late May for many of its models. Some of the discounts are as steep as 34%. Its cheapest car, the Seagull mini hatchback, now costs only about $7,700, down from about $10,000.

    The intense price war has led high-profile auto executives to sound the alarm — with the head of Great Wall Motor calling the industry “unhealthy.”
    In an interview with Chinese news outlet Sina Finance on May 23, Great Wall Motor Chairman Wei Jianjun drew parallels to China’s moribund property sector and its now defunct poster child, developer Evergrande.
    “An ‘Evergrande-like’ crisis already exists in the automotive industry,” he said. “It just hasn’t erupted yet.”
    A government-backed industry group has also called on companies not to “dump” vehicles below the cost of production. In a statement, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers took a veiled swipe at BYD.
    “A certain automaker has taken the lead in launching significant price cuts and many companies have followed suit, triggering a new round of ‘price war’ panic,” the group said.
    BYD dismissed Wei’s comment as alarmist and said it believes in fair competition in response to CAAM’s criticism.

    BYD Seagull mini-hatchback on display at a Beijing dealership on June 6, 2025.

    In a sign of further strain, sellers at the Beijing used car market told CNBC about a phenomenon known as “zero mileage used cars,” which is meant to help auto manufacturers and dealers inflate sales volumes. This happens when cars are registered and plated and then marked as sold, but haven’t ever been driven.
    Ma said he is worried about where the fierce competition leads. He told CNBC he sees the impact of the intense competition on consumers who are already shy about spending in the down economy.
    “With the price dropping like this, a lot of buyers might wait,” he said. More

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    FanDuel adds 50-cent surcharge on Illinois bets to offset state taxes, DraftKings may follow

    FanDuel is adding a 50-cent surcharge on all Illinois wagers.
    The move is designed to offset the high taxes in the state.
    DraftKings said it “anticipates taking action and expects to share more information soon.”

    FanDuel is upping the ante in Illinois with a new 50-cent surcharge on all wagers, and DraftKings may be next.
    Flutter-owned FanDuel is introducing the charge to mitigate the impact of new taxes that the state instituted with its new budget, which disproportionately affect the two leading sportsbooks.

    The new tax is applied to each wager that a sportsbook accepts — 25 cents per bet for the first 20 million wagers, 50 cents per wager after that.
    “Should the state reverse its decision at any point in the future, FanDuel will immediately remove the $0.50 transaction fee,” Flutter said in a press release.
    DraftKings may be following suit. In a statement issued on Tuesday, a company spokesperson said, “DraftKings anticipates taking action and expects to share more information soon.”
    Combined, FanDuel and DraftKings account for about 75% of the Illinois sports betting market.
    Citizens gaming analyst Jordan Bender estimates the new transaction fee will translate to $79 million in new 2026 revenue for DraftKings, or 5.4% of its projected EBITDA for that year, and $86 million for FanDuel, about 2% of EBITDA.

    The Illinois tax comes on top of a progressive tax passed last year, which leaves the most successful sportsbooks paying taxes at a rate of 40%. Before the change, they were paying at 15%.
    When that tax bill passed, DraftKings initially said it would pass along the costs to consumers. After massive backlash, it reversed course.
    Now FanDuel has picked up the gauntlet to manage the impact.
    “It is important to recognize that there is an optimal level for gaming tax rates that enables operators to provide the best experience for customers, maximize market growth and maximize revenue for states over time. We are disappointed that the Illinois Transaction Fee will disproportionately impact lower wagering,” said Flutter Entertainment CEO Peter Jackson in a statement.
    There are a number of other state legislatures considering raising their own tax rates, including New Jersey, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan and Pennsylvania.
    Jackson said the tax disproportionately punishes the companies that have invested the most in growing the regulated market, adding the fee will motivate gamblers to head to unregulated operators who don’t pay taxes and don’t have the same consumer protection.
    And he said, the tax most affects recreational customers who make small bets.
    “It is important to recognize that there is an optimal level for gaming tax rates that enables operators to provide the best experience for customers, maximize market growth and maximize revenue for states over time,” he said. More

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    Boeing airplane orders rise to highest level since late 2023 ahead of Paris Air Show

    Boeing booked 303 gross airplane orders in May, the most since December 2023.
    The plane maker has increased production of its bestselling 737 Max planes to 38 a month, the FAA-imposed limit.
    The manufacturer handed over 45 jets last month, in line with April, but nearly double the total of the same month last year.

    Boeing 737 aircraft fuselages are pictured at the company’s Renton factory in Renton, Washington, on April 15, 2025.
    Jason Redmond | AFP | Getty Images

    Boeing’s gross orders for new airplanes hit 303 last month, the most since December 2023, as the company makes strides against its rival Airbus and works to stabilize production of its bestselling jets near the Federal Aviation Administration limit.
    The manufacturer handed over 45 aircraft in May, in line with the month before but higher than the 24 it delivered a year earlier.

    This year through May, Boeing delivered 220 airplanes to customers, while Airbus delivered 243 planes. Deliveries are key to Boeing and Airbus generating cash since the bulk of an airplane’s price is paid when the jet is handed over.
    Net of cancellations and conversions, Boeing has logged orders for 512 planes this year, compared with 215 for Airbus. More orders could be signed next week at the Paris Air Show —  a trade event where companies get a chance to showcase new technology and aircraft, and strike deals.

    Read more CNBC airline news

    The FAA capped Boeing’s 737 Max production at 38 a month last year after a door plug blew out of a nearly new Max 9 as it climbed out of Portland, Oregon. While no one was seriously injured in the accident, the new safety crisis hit Boeing’s output.
    Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg said the company is planning to stabilize its production line at the current rate around 38 a month and then could seek permission from the FAA to raise that rate.
    Net of cancellations, Boeing logged 345 orders last month, 146 of them for 737 Maxes and 157 for 787 Dreamliners and yet-to-be-certified 777X planes in a massive wide-body order from Qatar Airways. The deal was signed during President Donald Trump’s visit to Doha, Qatar, last month.

    Ortberg said late last month that Boeing expects to resume deliveries of planes to Chinese airlines this month after a pause during the trade war between the Trump administration and Beijing.
    Including accounting adjustments, Boeing has received 606 net orders this year, and its backlog was 5,943 at the end of May.

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    Paramount to cut 3% of U.S. workforce as it deepens cost-cutting

    Paramount Global told employees that it would be reducing its workforce by 3.5% and that the majority of the impacted staff would be alerted on Tuesday.
    It’s the latest round of layoffs at the media company as it contends with cord-cutting and prepares to merge with Skydance Media.
    Layoffs have been taking place across the media industry in recent weeks, with reported headcount reductions at Disney and Warner Bros. Discovery.

    The Paramount Studios in Los Angeles on April 29, 2024.
    Eric Thayer | Bloomberg | Getty Images

    Paramount Global is cutting its U.S.-based staff by 3.5%, or several hundred employees, in the latest round of layoffs at the media company as it contends with the decline of the traditional pay-TV bundle and macroeconomic headwinds.
    The company notified its staff of the impending layoffs on Tuesday morning, according to a memo viewed by CNBC. The memo, which came from the office of the CEO — George Cheeks, Chris McCarthy and Brian Robbins — said the majority of the impacted staff will be notified on Tuesday.

    The layoffs also come as Paramount has been in the process of seeking regulatory approval for its proposed merger with Skydance Media, which has been held up by a legal battle between Paramount-owned CBS and the Trump administration over a “60 Minutes” interview with former Vice President Kamala Harris.
    Last June the trio of CEOs presented a go-forward plan that had included job cuts and reduced spending. In August, Paramount began the process of reducing its U.S.-based workforce by 15%.
    In Tuesday’s memo the CEOs said that the process may also result in some impacts to the workforce outside of the U.S. over time.
    “We recognize how difficult this is and are very thankful for everyone’s hard work and contributions. These changes are necessary to address the environment we are operating in and best position Paramount for success,” the CEOs said in the memo.
    Layoffs have been taking place across the media industry in recent weeks, with reported headcount reductions at Disney and Warner Bros. Discovery.
    Paramount employed roughly 18,600 full- and part-time employees globally as of December, before recent cuts, according to the regulatory filing.

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    RFK Jr. removes all members of CDC panel advising U.S. on vaccines

    Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Monday said he is “retiring” all 17 members of a crucial government panel of vaccine advisors.
    Kennedy is removing all members of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, or ACIP, which advises the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
    It’s the latest move by Kennedy – a prominent vaccine skeptic – to change and potentially undermine vaccinations in the U.S. since he took the helm at HHS.

    U.S. Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. testifies before the Senate Committee on Appropriations hearing on the Department of Health and Human Services budget, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 20, 2025.
    Ken Cedeno | Reuters

    Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Monday said he is “retiring” all 17 members of a crucial government panel of vaccine advisors, a shocking step that could help to sow doubts about immunizations in the U.S.
    “A clean sweep is needed to re-establish public confidence in vaccine science,” Kennedy said in an opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal on Monday.

    Kennedy is removing all members of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, or ACIP, which advises the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The group reviews vaccine data and makes recommendations that determine who is eligible for shots and whether insurers should cover them, among other efforts.
    ACIP members are independent medical and public experts who make recommendations based on rigorous scientific review and evidence. The CDC director has to sign off on those recommendations for them to become official policy.
    It is unclear who Kennedy will appoint to the new group. In a release, HHS said ACIP will still hold a planned meeting from June 25 to 27 to make recommendations. A person familiar with the matter told CNBC that new members will run that meeting.
    The advisor overhaul is the latest move by Kennedy – a prominent vaccine skeptic – to change and potentially undermine vaccinations in the U.S. since he took the helm at HHS. Under Kennedy, HHS stopped recommending routine Covid-19 vaccines for healthy children and healthy pregnant women and canceled programs intended to discover new vaccines to prevent future pandemics, among other changes.
    Kennedy said Monday HHS will put “the restoration of public trust above any pro- or antivaccine agenda.”

    Kennedy added some of the members on the committee were last-minute appointees of the Biden administration and noted that, without ousting advisors from the current group, the Trump administration would not have been able to appoint a majority of new members until 2028.
    Kennedy claimed that the panel has been “plagued with persistent conflicts of interest and has become little more than a rubber stamp for any vaccine.”
    But all HHS agencies and their advisory panels have had rigorous policies for conflicts of interest, and there have been no related issues for years. All members of federal vaccine advisory committees are already required to comply with regulations around disclosing potential conflicts of interest.
    The announcement comes days after pediatric infectious disease expert Dr. Lakshmi Panagiotakopoulos resigned as co-leader of ACIP due to the belief she is “no longer able to help the most vulnerable members” of the U.S. population.
    Health policy experts previously told CNBC that a shake-up of the advisory committee could produce politicized recommendations that highlight the harms rather than the benefits of shots. Those recommendations could also create greater distrust in the CDC and Trump administration among scientists and public health experts.
    ACIP has also scrutinized vaccine products in the past, in contrast to what Kennedy and other Trump administration figures have argued. In certain instances, the group has recommended more restricted use of vaccines than their approval under the Food and Drug Administration would permit.
    For example, the FDA approved Merck’s HPV vaccine for use in women and men ages 9 to 45. But the CDC only recommends its use in patients ages 9 to 26, because there is a lower public health benefit of the vaccine in those ages 27 to 45.
    — CNBC’s Angelica Peebles contributed to this report. More

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    Disney to pay Comcast $438.7 million to take full control of Hulu, ending lengthy valuation process

    Disney has agreed to pay Comcast $438.7 million to acquire Comcast’s stake in streaming service Hulu.
    In 2023 Disney said it would buy Comcast’s remaining stake in Hulu to take full ownership of the streaming service. Disney initially paid $8.6 billion to Comcast.
    Since then Disney and Comcast have been in an appraisal process for the remaining payment.

    Signage is seen at the 2019 Deadline Contenders Hulu Reception at Paramount Theater on the Paramount Studios lot on April 07, 2019 in Hollywood, California.
    Rachel Murray | Getty Images

    Disney has agreed to pay Comcast $438.7 million for its stake in the streaming service Hulu, concluding a years-long appraisal process.
    In 2023 Disney announced it intended to buy Comcast’s 33% stake in Hulu. At the time, Disney paid $8.6 billion, which reflected Hulu’s guaranteed minimum value of $27.5 billion. The two companies had agreed on that floor in 2019.

    Disney’s announcement came as no surprise as it was widely reported by CNBC and others that Disney was looking to take full ownership of Hulu. Disney took two-thirds ownership of Hulu when it acquired Fox Corp.’s entertainment assets.
    Following that initial payment, Disney and Comcast entered into an appraisal process that was originally expected to conclude in 2024.
    Disney said its appraiser had reached a valuation below the guaranteed floor, while the appraiser for Comcast’s NBCUniversal “arrived at a valuation substantially in excess of the guaranteed floor value.” The process was concluded by a third appraiser on Monday, according to an SEC filing.
    The final transaction is expected to close on or before July 24. Disney will record the payment in its “net income attributable to noncontrolling interests,” which will then reduce “net income attributable to Disney” in its fiscal third quarter income statement. It’s not expected to impact Disney’s prior guidance for fiscal 2025 adjusted earnings.
    “We are pleased this is finally resolved. We have had a productive partnership with NBCUniversal, and we wish them the best of luck,” said Disney CEO Bob Iger in a statement.

    Iger added that the completed acquisition paves the way for “a deeper and more seamless integration” of Hulu and Disney+ content, as well as the upcoming ESPN direct-to-consumer streaming app, called ESPN.
    Disney has already begun integrating the two existing services, which are also offered together in a bundle with ESPN+, the current sports streaming offering.
    Comcast’s NBCUniversal has been focused on building up its streaming service, Peacock, since it launched in 2020.
    “Hulu was a great start for us in streaming that generated nearly $10 billion in proceeds for Comcast and created an important audience for NBCUniversal’s world-class content,” a Comcast spokesperson said in a statement Monday. “We wish Disney well with Hulu and appreciate the cooperative way our teams managed the partnership.”
    Hulu had more than 50 million subscribers as of March 29, according to Disney’s most recent earnings report. In total, Disney had 180.7 million streaming subscribers, the bulk of which come from Disney+. Comcast reported in April that Peacock had 41 million subscribers.
    Disclosure: Comcast owns NBCUniversal, the parent company of CNBC. More

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    FDA approves Merck’s RSV shot for infants, ramping up competition with Sanofi and AstraZeneca

    The Food and Drug Administration approved Merck’s shot designed to protect infants from respiratory syncytial virus during their first season of the virus.
    The decision will allow the company to launch the drug, which will be marketed as Enflonsia, ahead of the RSV season that typically kicks off around fall and winter.
    Merck’s shot will compete against a similar blockbuster treatment from Sanofi and AstraZeneca called Beyfortus.

    Mike Blake | Reuters

    The Food and Drug Administration on Monday approved Merck’s shot designed to protect infants from respiratory syncytial virus during their first season of the virus, bringing to market a rival to a similar treatment from Sanofi and AstraZeneca.
    The decision will allow the company to launch the drug, which will be marketed as Enflonsia, ahead of the RSV season that typically kicks off around fall and winter and lasts through the spring. Merck said in a release that it expects orders for the shot to begin in July, with shipments delivered before the virus starts to spread widely.

    The approval gives doctors a new option for tackling the virus, which causes thousands of deaths among older Americans and hundreds of deaths among infants each year. Complications from RSV are the leading cause of hospitalization among newborns.
    “We are committed to ensuring availability of [Enflonsia] in the U.S. before the start of the upcoming RSV season to help reduce the significant burden of this widespread seasonal infection on families and health care systems,” Dr. Dean Li, president of Merck Research Laboratories, said in a release.
    Merck’s shot will compete against a similar blockbuster treatment from Sanofi and AstraZeneca called Beyfortus, which was in short supply nationwide during the 2023 RSV season due to unprecedented demand.
    Both are preventative monoclonal antibodies, which deliver antibodies directly into the bloodstream to provide immediate protection. But each targets a different part of the virus, making it difficult to compare them directly.
    Merck’s shot can be administered to infants regardless of their weight, which the company said may offer convenience in terms of dosing. Meanwhile, the recommended dosage of Beyfortus is based on an infant’s body weight.

    Sanofi on Monday revealed an aggressive effort to increase supply of Beyfortus, including a plan to begin shipping the shot early in the third quarter. Last year, Beyfortus booked sales of €1.7 billion ($1.8 billion).
    Vaccines for RSV are also available in the U.S. from companies such as Pfizer, GSK and Moderna. But those shots are only for use in adults or in pregnant women. Recently, the FDA paused testing of RSV shots in young children while it evaluates safety concerns.
    All of the companies in the market are waiting for a meeting of outside vaccine advisors to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from June 25 to 27, when they will form recommendations for RSV shots and other immunizations.
    In the mid- to late-stage trial on Enflonsia, the shot reduced RSV-related hospitalizations by more than 84% and decreased hospitalizations due to lower respiratory infections by 90% compared with a placebo among infants through five months. The shot also reduced lower respiratory infections that required medical attention by more than 60% compared with a placebo through five months.
    RSV is a common cause of lower respiratory tract infections such as pneumonia.  More