CHD vs AAP filed 1/21/26, hearing on February 13, 2026

Children’s Health Defense (CHD) and five other plaintiffs today accused the American Academy of Pediatrics of running a decades-long racketeering scheme to defraud American families about the safety of the childhood vaccine schedule. CHD filed the RICO suit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

On January 21, 2026, Children's Health Defense (CHD) — along with several physicians and parents of vaccine-injured children — filed a federal civil RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act) lawsuit against the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

The suit accused the AAP of running a decades-long racketeering scheme to defraud families and doctors about the safety of the childhood vaccine schedule. Key allegations included:

• Making false or unqualified claims that the vaccine schedule is “safe and effective” without comprehensive long-term studies (especially no true unvaccinated control group studies).
• Having undisclosed financial ties to vaccine manufacturers.
• Incentivizing pediatricians with bonuses or higher payments for achieving high vaccination rates.
• Misrepresenting or downplaying findings from safety reviews (such as those from the Institute of Medicine/National Academy of Medicine).

CHD sought declaratory relief, an injunction requiring corrective statements from the AAP, and damages.

What Happened Next

• The February 13, 2026 hearing was an early scheduling/status conference (not the main trial).
• AAP was required to file its answer by February 23, 2026.
• As of early April 2026, the case was still in the early stages. AAP filed a motion to dismiss the RICO claims (around April 6, 2026), arguing they were without merit.
• The case is ongoing, and no final ruling or settlement has been reported yet. These types of complex civil RICO cases often take months or years to resolve.

Context and Related Events

This CHD lawsuit was filed on the same day that Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced a broad investigation into financial incentives tied to childhood vaccines.

It occurred amid a larger battle over vaccine policy in early 2026, involving RFK Jr. (then HHS Secretary) and attempts to revise the childhood immunization schedule. A separate (and much larger) lawsuit by the AAP and other medical groups against HHS/Kennedy was also active at the time, and that one saw a preliminary injunction in March 2026 blocking some of the administration’s vaccine schedule changes.

Bottom Line (as of mid-April 2026)

• The CHD v. AAP RICO suit is still alive but in the pre-trial phase.
• AAP is fighting hard to get it dismissed.
• No major “win” or dismissal has occurred yet for either side.