Senators urge release of $600M for Gavi vaccines

May 6, 2026

Summary

Bipartisan senators urged the Trump administration to release $600 million Congress approved for Gavi before the funds expire Sept. 30.

Why this matters

The dispute affects whether previously approved U.S. funding reaches a major global vaccine program before the money expires. It also highlights a broader clash between Congress and the administration over vaccine policy and foreign health aid.

Bipartisan Senate appropriators urged the State Department to release $600 million Congress approved for Gavi, an international vaccine group for developing countries, saying the Trump administration had not provided the money over the past two fiscal years.

In a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio led by Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., the senators asked why the U.S. had not released the funds Congress appropriated for fiscal 2025 and 2026. Congress approved $300 million for each year, and the money is set to expire Sept. 30 if it is not released.

Lawmakers said that Gavi “plays a critical role in averting the spread of preventable diseases around the globe and helps protect public health in our country by stopping outbreaks before they reach our borders.”

The letter was also signed by Sens. Patty Murray, D-Wash., Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, and Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska.

Lawmakers said Gavi has vaccinated more than 1 billion children in some of the poorest countries against diseases including measles, malaria, and polio. They also said the alliance supports U.S. jobs by purchasing more than $12.5 billion in U.S. goods and services.

Congress provided Gavi $290 million a year from fiscal 2018 through 2023. In 2024, the U.S. pledged nearly $1.6 billion over five years, about 13% of the group’s funding through 2030.

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has delayed the funding, citing vaccine safety concerns and concerns that Gavi would direct U.S. money to the World Health Organization. A Health and Human Services spokesperson said Gavi had not provided the U.S. with a detailed accounting of how federal funds are used and had declined to develop a plan to phase out vaccines containing thimerosal.

“Secretary Kennedy has made clear that global health decisions must be grounded in transparent evidence and open scientific debate. The United States is calling on Gavi to address these issues and strengthen public trust; until then, U.S. financial contributions will remain paused,” the spokesperson said.

During a recent Senate Appropriations Committee hearing, Kennedy told Shaheen, “Gavi has been intransigent.” He also said Gavi still uses a diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis vaccine that was discontinued in the U.S. in 1997.

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