Image Credit: TN General Assembly & Canva
The Tennessee Conservative [By Olivia Lupia] –
On May 13, the Fiscal Review Committee of Tennessee’s General Assembly approved a number of contracts for companies involved with various government functions, mainly in state-facilitated TennCare, but several of these corporations appear to have missions and values or ties to other institutions with ideologies or documented activities in direct conflict to or in violation of Tennessee legislation passed by this same General Assembly.
Bernadette Pajer, a grassroots advocate and leader with Stand for Health Freedom Tennessee, recently addressed committee members in a letter expressing these concerns and detailing research which highlighted several of these companies whose contracts were just approved and their ties to globalist bodies like the World Economic Forum, affiliations with pharmaceutical companies, and lobbying actions against legislation intended to protect the rights and interests of Tennesseans.
Some of these corporations and their exploits include:
McKinsey & Company: Global management consulting firm; most recent contract, worth $32 million, signed for 2025-2030
- Partnership with & support of the World Economic Forum (WEF)
- Consulting services & contracts with the World Health Organization (WHO) & Gates Foundation
- Advisement to Pfizer and Canadian government on COVID-19 vaccine distribution strategy.
- Work with Purdue Pharma and other opioid companies on marketing strategies to maximize profits, targeting high-volume opioid prescribers, resulting in multistate $573 million settlement, with Tennessee receiving over $15 million.
- Notably, 2025 legislation bans jurisdiction of global organizations in Tennessee
TennCare Managed Organizations: UnitedHealthcare Community Plan, Wellpoint Tennessee, BlueCare Tennessee
- Lawmakers attempted to remove or restrict these organizations from TennCare contracting in 2023 through HB1215 because their parent companies cover gender-affirming care in other states. The legislation did not pass.
- Questions remain as to whether the approved contracts contain language ensuring the companies are in compliance will all relevant TN laws regarding gender-affirming care, including 2026’s HB2498, which prohibits TennCare coverage of such procedures.
Public Health Foundation (PHF): Organizational mission to increase immunization rates in communities, training TN Dept. of Health employees through its TRAIN learning platform.
- Produces & distributes training materials promoting vaccination in a manner inconsistent with and unsupported by product labeling.
- Works closely with the vaccine industry, introducing bias and conflicts of interest into TRAIN curriculum.
- During Dep. Of Health 2026 Immunization Provider Expo: Restoring Trust in Vaccines, 30 minutes was devoted to a presentation by an organization sponsored by BIO, Merck, Moderna, Pfizer, Sanofi, Sequiris, and GSK.
- Co-hosted a forum with Pfizer in 2025 which was also sponsored by several other health industry partners devoted to “health equity”.
- Intended to restore public trust by ensuring all forms of messaging align with established safety science as reflected on product labels, 2025’s Tennessee’s Restore Trust in Public Health Messaging Act prohibits the Department of Health, the state executive branch, and any entity receiving state funds or grants from promoting, distributing, or endorsing information about FDA-regulated products that conflicts with or does not accurately reflect the FDA approved label and specifically prohibits promoting co-administration of vaccines in the absence of adequate safety studies. As the PHF has been involved with organizations which appear to be in contradiction with this standard, these contracts remain questionable for approval by the legislative body.
TN Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics (TNAAP): Receives state funding, yet messaging on vaccination is often out of compliance with the Restore Trust in Public Health Messaging Act and lobbies against legislation strengthening parental rights for medical decision making and actively supports “gender-affirming care”.
- July 2025, AAP joined a suit against the Department of Health and Human Services challenging changes to the science-based removal of the recommendation for healthy and pregnant women to receive the COVID-19 vaccine and birth does of the hepatitis B vaccine.
- TNAAP opposed legislation closing loopholes in the “Mature Minor Doctrine”, banning gender-affirming care for minors, requiring food containing a vaccine or vaccine material as a drug under the Tennessee Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, prohibiting healthcare providers from refusing service to a TennCare enrollee based on vaccination status, and more.
“This committee has both the authority and the responsibility to ask whether the contracts it approves are consistent with the laws this body and its colleagues have enacted. The taxpayers of Tennessee deserve to know that their government means what it legislates — and that the contracts signed in their name do not quietly fund opposition to the very agendas those laws were written to address,” Pajer wrote to the committee.
She further asks whether the committee has the authority to require contracting agencies to certify compliance with current state laws or direct the Comptroller’s office to conduct an audit of each vendor regarding state laws before state funds are disbursed. She also proposes Committee Chair Todd Gardenhire (R-Chattanooga-District 10) propose a committee rule change or piece of legislation ensuring that any vendor’s known institutional relationships, organization missions, and their actions be assessed for compliance with state law before the committee votes for contract approval in future.
As of this writing, Pajer has not received an answer to her letter, nor has there been any public statements from the committee addressing these concerns.
To find out more about the members of the Fiscal Review Committee or for contact information, click here.
About the Author: Olivia Lupia is a political refugee from Colorado who now calls Tennessee home. A proud follower of Christ, she views all political happenings through a Biblical lens and aims to utilize her knowledge and experience to educate and equip others. Olivia is an outspoken conservative who has run for local office, managed campaigns, and been highly involved with state & local GOPs, state legislatures, and other grassroots organizations and movements. Olivia can be reached at olivia@tennesseeconservativenews.com.
