In a controversial move, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, under Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., announced the termination of 22 BARDA-funded mRNA vaccine development contracts totaling nearly $500 million. The shift pivots away from mRNA vaccine research for respiratory infections, including COVID-19 and influenza, favoring investment in alternative vaccine platforms. The decision, at odds with prevailing scientific consensus and amid ongoing mRNA cancer vaccine work, elicited concern across the biotech and public health communities regarding implications for pandemic preparedness and biomedical innovation.