President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Germany's Chancellor Friedrich Merz in the Oval Office of the White House, June 5, 2025, in Washington. Chris Kleponis/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock

This is a KFF Health News story.

The Trump administration's cancellation of $766 million in contracts to develop mRNA vaccines against potential pandemic flu viruses is the latest blow to national defense, former health security officials said. They warned that the U.S. could be at the mercy of other countries in the next pandemic.

"The administration's actions are gutting our deterrence from biological threats," said Beth Cameron, a senior adviser to the Brown University Pandemic Center and a former director at the White House National Security Council. "Canceling this investment is a signal t

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