HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is set to appoint seven new members to the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices — an influential panel responsible for reviewing vaccine data and issuing recommendations on their use.
Jeremy Faust, MD, an emergency physician at Boston-based Brigham and Women’s Hospital, first reported the news in his Inside Medicine newsletter after obtaining an internal list. Former federal officials familiar with the matter have confirmed the list’s authenticity, according to multiple reports.
Four things to know:1. Several of the new panel members Mr. Kennedy plans to appoint have been critical of vaccines. The list of potential new members includes Joseph Fraiman, MD, an emergency medicine physician who authored a study published in the journal Vaccine in 2022 that concluded Pfizer and Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccines were linked to a serious risk of adverse events. Other scientists have said the study is based on a flawed reanalysis of the drugmakers’ clinical trials. The list also includes Kirk Milhoan, a pediatric cardiologist and member of the Independent Medical Alliance, a group that has incorrectly claimed COVID vaccines led to rising infant mortality, according to The New York Times.When reached by Politico and the Times, several of the individuals named on the list said they have been contacted about joining ACIP, though none confirmed official appointments. In a statement to Becker’s, a spokesperson for HHS said, “You will hear it from us when there are new members to announce.”2. The ACIP committee is set to convene Sept. 18-19 and is expected to vote on recommendations for updated COVID vaccines, as well as on routine childhood vaccinations, including hepatitis B, and measles, mumps and rubella. If confirmed, new members would have little time to prepare for the meeting. In the past, newly appointed members have undergone a months-long vetting process before taking their seats. 3. Mr. Kennedy dismissed all 17 existing ACIP members in June, replacing them with eight handpicked members, several of whom have a history of anti-vaccine rhetoric. One of Mr. Kennedy’s picks has since stepped down due to financial conflicts of interest, according to the Times.
4. Reports of the additional ACIP appointments come amid ongoing turmoil at the CDC. In late August, Mr. Kennedy fired CDC director Susan Monarez, PhD, after less than a month into her role. Dr. Monarez has said she was pushed out for refusing to fire staff and “rubber-stamp” vaccine recommendations crafted by Mr. Kennedy’s revamped ACIP. Her firing prompted four other top leaders at the agency to resign.
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