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“Vaccines should be treated with nuance, recognizing differences between seasonal vaccines and childhood immunizations,” Dr. Ralph L. Abraham, the state’s surgeon general, wrote in a memo.
Louisiana’s top health official said in an internal memo to the state’s Health Department on Thursday that it would no longer use media campaigns or health fairs to promote vaccination against preventable illnesses.
The official, Dr. Ralph L. Abraham, Louisiana’s surgeon general, wrote in the memo that the state would “encourage each patient to discuss the risks and benefits of vaccination with their provider” but would “no longer promote mass vaccination.”
The letter came on a day when the U.S. Senate confirmed Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has raised questions about vaccines, as the new U.S. health secretary. But it was not clear if the memo had come in response to the change in federal leadership.
“Vaccines should be treated with nuance, recognizing differences between seasonal vaccines and childhood immunizations, which are an important part of providing immunity to our children,” wrote Dr. Abraham, a former Republican congressman.
A spokeswoman for the Louisiana Department of Health did not immediately respond on Thursday night to questions about the scope of the directive and how it might affect the distribution of vaccines.
The Health Department in New Orleans, Louisiana’s largest city, quickly said that it would not follow the state’s lead.