Access to Covid shot and 2 childhood vaccines may change this week. Here’s what to know.

Public health, explained: Sign up to receive Healthbeat’s free Atlanta newsletter here. Americans may get some movement – but maybe not much clarity – this week on their future access to Covid vaccines and two childhood immunizations as a federal committee convenes in Atlanta to vote on recommendations. The guidance that emerges from the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices meeting on Thursday and Friday could influence how and when pharmacists and doctors give the vaccines and whether insurers will pay for them. The committee has become a political battleground as Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. seeks to rework the country’s health infrastructure. Kennedy fired the previous expert members of ACIP and replaced them with his own picks, many of whom share his anti-vaccine views. Public health experts are expecting mixed messages from the meeting. The committee may recommend some shots, with restrictions that could keep people confused as to who should