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The Tennessee Department of Health is halting all adolescent vaccine outreach, even for vaccines not related to Covid-19, according to internal documents. The halt impacts all outreach to adolescents, including Covid-19 second-dose reminders, HPV reminders and kindergarten vaccination surveys, according the documents circulated within the department obtained by CNN and first reported by The Tennessean. The department of health did not respond to CNN inquiries on whether outreach and vaccination practices on Covid -19 or other vaccinations had changed. (Holcombe, 7/14)

The Tennessee Department of Health will halt all adolescent vaccine outreach – not just for coronavirus, but all diseases – amid pressure from Republican state lawmakers, according to an internal report and agency emails obtained by the Tennessean. If the health department must issue any information about vaccines, staff are instructed to strip the agency logo off the documents. The health department will also stop all COVID-19 vaccine events on school property, despite holding at least one such event this month. The decisions to end vaccine outreach and school events come directly from Health Commissioner Dr. Lisa Piercey, the internal report states. (Kellman, 7/13)

Tennessee’s former top vaccinations official said Tuesday that she couldn’t stay silent after she was fired this week amid scrutiny from Republican state lawmakers over her department’s outreach efforts to vaccinate teenagers against COVID-19. Dr. Michelle Fiscus, who was the medical director for vaccine-preventable diseases and immunization programs at the Tennessee Department of Health, said the state’s elected leaders put politics over the health of children by firing her for her efforts to get more Tennesseans vaccinated. (Mattise, 7/14)