Particle.news
Download on the App Store
16 ARTICLES
·
last wk.

RFK Jr. Replaces CDC Vaccine Advisory Committee With Eight Skeptics

Kennedy’s appointees include known anti-vaccine figures whose upcoming June meeting could reshape U.S. immunization recommendations.

Image
U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. testifies before a Senate Committee on Appropriations Subcommittee on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on May 20, 2025.
WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 20: U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. testifies before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions on Capitol Hill on May 20, 2025 in Washington, DC. Kennedy testified before the Senate Committee on the Department of Health and Human Services' proposed 2026 fiscal year budget. (Photo by Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)

Overview

  • On June 9, Secretary Kennedy removed all 17 members of the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices and announced eight new appointees two days later.
  • Appointees include critics of COVID-19 mRNA vaccines and members of anti-vaccine organizations, such as epidemiologist Martin Kulldorff and biochemist Robert Malone.
  • Health professionals and former Surgeon General Jerome Adams condemn the overhaul as politically motivated and warn it undermines the committee’s scientific credibility.
  • The reformed ACIP will convene on June 25 to vote on recommendations for vaccines including COVID-19, HPV, meningococcal disease, and RSV.
  • Analysts caution that any rollback of CDC recommendations could increase out-of-pocket costs and complicate vaccine coverage under federal, state, and private insurance programs.