Hidden Poll Reveals Majority of Americans Concerned About Vaccine Mandates and Pharma Influence

An unreleased poll, uncovered by The Daily Caller News Foundation and Reporter Emily Kopp, shows that Americans are increasingly concerned about vaccines. The poll was conducted by Trump Pollster Tony Fabrizio in October 2025 and commissioned by MAHA Action, but was never released. Meanwhile, two other polls with more narrow questions were conducted in August and December.

The unreleased poll found that 73% of respondents are concerned about vaccine requirements or mandates, while 90% said their biggest health-related concern is pharmaceutical companies having too much influence on public policy. Kopp also reports that 68% of poll respondents believe more research should be conducted on the cumulative effects of vaccines administered to infants.

The results of the October poll strongly contradict statements promoted by the Trump administration and media that vaccine reform is an unpopular issue. That framing was based on the polls released by Fabrizio, which asked different questions and framed them differently.

The unreleased poll found that a majority of voters (62%) were concerned about the public’s uptake of optional vaccines. Only a minority (11%) believes the government has sole responsibility for determining which vaccines the public should receive. 74% of respondents in the unreleased poll completely oppose blanket immunity for vaccine manufacturers, while only 14% support it.

Meanwhile, the released polls didn’t ask these specific vaccine questions. Instead, respondents were asked whether the administration should “remove established vaccine recommendations for diseases like whooping cough, measles, hepatitis, and others.” Only 22% of respondents supported this action.

YouGov published the results of an experiment in 2023 that shows the impact of leading questions on poll results. They asked leading questions in favor of the UK leaving the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), leading questions opposed to the UK leaving, and neutrally framed questions.

“We can see a clear pattern,” the authors wrote. “It is possible to totally distort and bias the results simply by leading the respondent to a particular answer. The first question, with its leading wording in favor of quitting the ECHR, showed an 18pt difference in the number of people wanting to leave from the neutral question, while the question with leading wording in favour of staying in the ECHR showed a 13pt deviation.”

Fabrizio’s published polls used the word “established,” which, according to YouGov’s explanation, is an example of a leading question. The question provides a positive framing of the recommendation within the question, which elicits a positive response from the respondent toward the existing recommendations. Fabrizio’s poll also directly asked about recommendations for specific vaccines for individuals over 50.

Kopp referenced both Politico and the New York Times, which used this polling data to argue that moves to downsize the vaccine schedule are “unpopular” and that the administration is pushing Secretary Kennedy to pivot “towards food and away from vaccines.”

The unreleased poll shows widespread concern about pharmaceutical influence in government. Also, the poll indicates significant concern about vaccine mandates, government requirements, and the safety/efficacy of some vaccines. While there may be broad support for certain existing vaccines for older adults, the published Fabrizio polls do not gauge public support for cutting the childhood vaccine schedule from 17 products, which is more than any peer country recommends for healthy children.

In January, the CDC updated the childhood schedule from 17 to 11 to align with Denmark’s schedule. Denmark, in particular, has great health outcomes for children, including a lower infant mortality rate. As a result of a court order in the lawsuit brought by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), the childhood schedule updates have reverted to the 17-shot schedule.

Three key officials in the FDA have resigned or been fired – Director Marty Makary, CDER Director Tracy Beth Hoeg, and CBER Director Vinay Prasad. All three received media coverage questioning their credentials and association with vaccine skepticism. The AP said Makary became known by “skewering the medical establishment,” wrote a paper stating that vaccine boosters for children would cause more harm than good, and opposed vaccine mandates. The AP article following the 2025 confirmation hearing closes with statements by Dr. Paul Offit, who stated that Makary received the position on the basis that he has shown disdain for the FDA.

CBS News reported in December that Hoeg advocated for “making it more difficult for young men to receive the COVID vaccine” because of the potential risks from myocarditis. NBC News said Prasad spread misinformation about vaccines, defended Kennedy’s views on vaccines, and was an outspoken critic of Peter Marks. The Informed Consent Action Network (ICAN) released recordings and documents of Marks that revealed his push to approve the emergency use authorization for the COVID-19 vaccine to rush a mandate for the military despite known serious side effects.

A Rasmussen poll from September 2025 found 56% of respondents believe it is likely that COVID-19 vaccines caused a “significant number of unexplained deaths,” with 32% saying it is very likely.

Kopp points out the potential connection between the suppressed poll and a “covert lobbying effort from pharmaceutical companies” reported by Endpoints News. Pharma companies were reportedly upset by delays and changes in approval standards under these health agency officials. The MAHA poll was unreleased while other polls by the same agency were published despite framing the question around “established” vaccine recommendations, which could be interpreted as a leading question.

President Trump said during a recent interview with Sheryl Attkisson that he believes in vaccines, such as polio, but he also believes the US has too many. Trump again compared the schedule to Denmark, which was the standard for comparison when Hoeg presented to the ACIP committee and when the CDC updated the childhood schedule in January.

While Trump and Kennedy have continually suggested a lighter vaccine schedule is warranted, the FDA shakeup suggests the voices pushing for vaccine reform are being pushed out, according to Kopp and other reports. Vaccine skepticism varies strongly based on the wording of the questions and the specific vaccines being mentioned, but concerns about pharmaceutical influence over federal health policy is overwhelming. Despite that knowledge, the Trump administration moved forward with the pressured resignation or firing of Makary, Hoeg, and Prasad.