Vaccine maker shares fall as Trump picks RFK Jr. to lead HHS

Shares of vaccine makers fell Thursday as President-elect Donald Trump nominated Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a prominent vaccine skeptic, to lead the Department of Health and Human Services.

Shares fell in the last hour of trading as reports came forward about Trump’s expected election. Modern‘s stock closed more than 5% lower Thursday, shares on Novavax fell more than 7% and Pfizer‘s stock ended more than 2% lower.

Shares of BioNTechthe German drugmaker, which helped develop a Covid vaccine with Pfizer, closed more than 6% lower. British pharmaceutical manufacturer GSKwhich makes flu shots and several other vaccines, closed about 2% lower.

Shares of those companies fell further in extended trading after Trump confirmed his election in a post on his platform Truth Social.

Health policy experts have said a second Trump term could allow Kennedy to ramp up anti-vaccine rhetoric, which could deter more Americans from receiving Covid shots and routine vaccinations that for decades have saved millions of lives and prevented debilitating diseases.

Pfizer, Moderna and Novavax are still recovering from falling Covid vaccination rates in the US, which have dented their profits over the past two years.

Kennedy’s track record as a vaccine skeptic is extensive. He has long made misleading and false statements about the safety of shots, such as claiming they are linked to autism despite numerous studies dating back decades debunking the association.

Kennedy is the founder of the nonprofit organization Children’s Health Defense, the most well-funded anti-vaccine organization in the country.