Vaccine Policy in Turmoil: New CDC Advisory Committee Meets Amid Outcry
Vaccine Policy in Turmoil: New CDC Advisory Committee Meets Amid Outcry
The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), typically a quiet body shaping U.S. vaccine policy, is now at the epicenter of a major controversy. Its two-day meeting, commencing this Wednesday in Atlanta, is drawing intense scrutiny following Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s recent overhaul of its membership.
Just two weeks ago, Secretary Kennedy controversially dismissed all 17 standing members of the ACIP, replacing them with a smaller, hand-picked group. This drastic move has sparked outrage, with Senators Bill Cassidy (R-La.) and Patty Murray (D-Wash.), key figures on the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions committee, publicly demanding a postponement of the meeting due to grave concerns about the new appointees.
Experts warn that Kennedy’s actions fundamentally alter the committee’s long-standing apolitical nature. Jason Schwartz, an associate professor at the Yale School of Public Health, notes the unprecedented shift, lamenting how the ACIP is now being viewed through a partisan lens, akin to the Supreme Court. This politicization marks a significant departure for a body historically comprised of independent scientific and medical volunteers.
The current meeting follows Kennedy’s late-May directive to the CDC to remove recommendations for routine COVID-19 vaccines for children and pregnant women – a move made without ACIP input, breaking decades of transparent, consensus-driven policy-making. This unilateral decision, described as “shocking” by former senior CDC official Dr. Fiona Havers, was a catalyst for her departure from the agency in June. Havers, who led a team analyzing COVID and RSV data, refused to legitimize the new committee by presenting her findings.
Alarm bells are ringing over the qualifications of several new ACIP members. Many lack deep, current vaccine expertise, with some having previously disseminated false claims about vaccines. Examples include Retsef Levi, an MIT professor who has falsely linked COVID vaccines to deaths, and Dr. Robert Malone, an early mRNA researcher who has baselessly suggested COVID vaccines cause cancer. Both have also served as paid expert witnesses against a major drug company, raising conflict of interest concerns. Martin Kulldorff, formerly of Harvard, will chair the new committee.
Pediatricians and public health advocates express profound concern. Dr. Alexandra Cvijanovich, an Albuquerque pediatrician and spokesperson for the American Academy of Pediatrics, states she can no longer trust ACIP’s recommendations, observing a growing confusion and distrust among patients who once had full faith in the vaccine system.
The chaotic transition has also impacted the meeting’s agenda. Crucial discussions on vaccines for cervical cancer and pneumonia have been removed, reportedly because the related work groups couldn’t complete their tasks without the former, active ACIP members. Instead, the agenda now includes topics long favored by vaccine skeptics. A vote is scheduled on thimerosal, a preservative whose link to autism was disproven decades ago, despite a lack of recent research. This discussion will include a presentation from Lyn Redwood, a figure from an anti-vaccine advocacy group formerly chaired by Kennedy. The inclusion of the MMRV vaccine, despite a long-standing policy on its administration, also raises questions among vaccine policy experts.
As the meeting unfolds, observers are bracing for significant shifts in U.S. vaccine policy. The proceedings will offer a crucial glimpse into the future direction of public health under Secretary Kennedy’s influence, with many fearing a departure from evidence-based, consensus-driven recommendations that have safeguarded public health for decades.
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