Dangerous moral argument; definition of death; ethics on call; in the media
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January 8, 2026
Is There Such a Thing as Over-Vaccination? The dangerous moral argument informing the new U.S. vaccine schedule
This week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reduced the number of vaccines recommended for all children, following the view of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. that American children are over-vaccinated. “Not only does this argument rest on false claims about current practices, it also relies on the idea that kids getting a lot of vaccines is inherently bad,” writes Hastings Center Fellow Arthur Caplan inHastings Bioethics Forum. “Vaccination is inherently good. Vaccines prevent illness and death and therefore it is very ethical to vaccinate children.” Read the Bioethics Forum essay.
In a subsequent piece in MedPage Today, Caplan noted that the change in vaccine recommendation was driven by a moral argument – in favor of personal freedom and parental choice – rather than the scientific evidence. “When ethics and morality are being put in the service of a crude, absurd ideology of freedom regardless of the price, then the interests of kids, and indeed all of us, suffer.” Read the MedPage Today essay.
Register: Ethics on Call Documentary on a bioethics pioneer
Join us in New York on Feb 11 for the premiere of a documentary about bioethics pioneer and longtime Hastings Center colleague Nancy Dubler. From clinical ethics to mediation, healthcare quality improvement to pandemic guidance, Dubler's innovations shaped bioethics and health policy in New York and nationally. The documentary features commentary by Hastings Center senior research scholar Nancy Berlinger and Board Chair Joseph J. Fins. MSK Zuckerman Auditorium, 417 E. 68th Street, New York. Learn more and register.
There’s still no definitive answer to this enduring and consequential question, notes an article in the latest issue of the Hastings Center Report. A major point of disagreement concerns brain death. While it is legally considered death throughout the United States, brain death remains controversial, particularly with the advancement of life-support technologies. The article analyzes a recent effort to revise the legal definition of death in the U.S., showing how it was indefinitely paused three years ago when the working group was unable to form a consensus. Read the article.
In the Media Ethics of gene therapy research; artificial wombs
Hastings Center senior research scholar Karen Maschke discussed a project she is leading on ethical questions surrounding gene therapy research in an interview with the Highlands Current. The multiyear project is funded by the National Institutes of Health, and Maschke underscored the importance of federal funding to science research. Read the article.
NPR’s “Morning Edition” quoted Hastings senior researcher Insoo Hyun on the ethical implications of new research using artificial wombs. "This is really important work that's moving embryo research forward – an important advance in the search for scientific answers for what makes a pregnancy healthy," he said. "However, it also presents a technology that could be used for other purposes that are concerning." Listen to the interview.
Hastings Fellows News Congratulations to Brendan Parent and Judy Illes
Brendan Parent became director of medical ethics at NYU Langone Health/NYU Grossman School of Medicine. Judy Illes has been appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada– one of Canada’s highest honors – in recognition of her groundbreaking contributions to biomedical ethics and neuroscience and her support for Indigenous knowledge as a vital source from which to reframe Western Traditional medicine.
Ethics on Call: The Nancy Dubler Story. World premiere of documentary featuring commentary by Hastings Center senior research scholar Nancy Berlinger and Board Chair Joseph J. Fins. February 11.
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