I would like to highlight this news article in NPR:
RFK Jr. singled out one study to cut funds for global vaccines. Is that study valid?
https://www.npr.org/sections/goats-and-soda/2025/07/01/g-s1-74752/rfk-jr...
Below are extracts and a comment from me.
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'Last week, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. made a pronouncement that stunned the global health world.
Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance — which has vaccinated more than half the world's children in many of the world's lowest-income countries — was hosting a major event to solicit donations for its global vaccination efforts. RFK Jr. decided to take the opposite stance. He said the U.S. would cut off more than a billion dollars that had previously been promised over the next few years. In a video, he slammed Gavi, saying "it has neglected the key issue of vaccine safety."
His evidence: A study from 2017...
Vaccine experts interviewed by NPR point to several problems with the study...
First: The data is old — really old...
Second: Two of the key researchers later came out with a different finding...
Third: The study methods are not ideal...
Fourth: Today's vaccines are different...'
"The study is based on ancient data," says Dr. Beate Kampmann, a vaccinologist and pediatrician who is the scientific director of the Centre for Global Health at Charité, Universitätsmedizin Berlin — one of Europe's largest university hospitals...
"People like Kennedy then put their little poker in and pull out the very specific study that suits their agenda," says Kampmann, noting the RFK Jr. has spread inaccurate information about vaccines in the past.
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COMMENT (NPW): We have had many HIFA discussions on evidence-informed policymaking, supported by WHO, TDR and others. We have an expert working group on this subject standing by to undertake in-depth exploration on the HIFA forums, subject to sponsorship (£5k).
'Improvements in health and health systems worldwide, and especially in low- and middle-income countries, are largely dependent on the translation of cumulative research evidence into policy and practice. HIFA is uniquely positioned to convene the full range of relevant stakeholders worldwide to explore how this evidence can be better translated, looking at drivers and barriers at all levels: international, national and facility level worldwide.' https://www.hifa.org/projects/evidence-informed-policy-and-practice
The key word here is 'cumulative'.
I asked ChatGPT: Should policymakers base a policy decision on a single study?
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No, policymakers should not base a policy decision on a single study. Here’s why:
1. Scientific Validity and Reliability
A single study might contain methodological flaws, bias, or statistical anomalies.
Replication by independent researchers is crucial to confirm findings. Policy should be based on a body of evidence, not isolated results.
2. Generalizability
One study might focus on a specific population, location, or set of circumstances. Its results may not apply broadly.
Decisions affecting large populations need generalizable and robust evidence.
3. Risk of Overreaction
Acting on one study can lead to unintended consequences if the findings are later disproven or revised.
Policy changes, especially in areas like health, education, or criminal justice, can have far-reaching impacts that are hard to reverse.
4. Scientific Consensus
Policy is stronger when it reflects consensus among experts and incorporates meta-analyses or systematic reviews, which weigh multiple studies for stronger conclusions.
5. Ethical Responsibility
Policymakers have a duty to act in the public's best interest, which requires caution, deliberation, and evidence-based reasoning.
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Best wishes, Neil
HIFA profile: Neil Pakenham-Walsh is coordinator of HIFA (Healthcare Information For All), a global health community that brings all stakeholders together around the shared goal of universal access to reliable healthcare information. HIFA has 20,000 members in 180 countries, interacting in four languages and representing all parts of the global evidence ecosystem. HIFA is administered by Global Healthcare Information Network, a UK-based nonprofit in official relations with the World Health Organization. Email: neil@hifa.org