By I. Edwards HealthDay Reporter<\/b>
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TUESDAY, June 10, 2025 (HealthDay News) \u2014 U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr<\/a>. has removed all 17 members of the expert panel that makes U.S. vaccine recommendations.<\/p>\n Kennedy made the surprise announcement in an opinion piece<\/a> published June 8 in The Wall Street Journal.<\/em> He said the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, or ACIP, has been \u201cplagued with persistent conflicts of interest\u201d and called it a \u201crubber stamp\u201d for new vaccines.<\/p>\n The panel gives advice to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).<\/p>\n When its vaccine recommendations are approved by the CDC director, they become official public health guidance and must be covered by health insurance with no out-of-pocket costs, The Washington Post <\/em>reported.<\/p>\n ACIP meets in public several times each year. Members are required to share any conflicts of interest before each meeting.<\/p>\n This move appears to break a promise Kennedy made earlier this year. During his confirmation process, he told Sen. Bill Cassidy<\/a> (R-La.) that he would \u201cmaintain the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention\u2019s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices without changes.\u201d<\/p>\n Cassidy shared this detail in a speech on the Senate floor when explaining why he ultimately voted to confirm Kennedy in February.<\/p>\n Cassidy, who is a physician and leads the Senate health committee, had expressed concerns about Kennedy\u2019s views on vaccines.<\/p>\n This isn\u2019t the first time Kennedy has acted without considering input from the vaccine advisory panel. In May, he unilaterally announced<\/a> that his agency would no longer recommend COVID-19 vaccines for healthy children and pregnant women.<\/p>\n That decision went against current CDC guidelines and was not shared with the agency ahead of time. The CDC found out only after the news was posted on social media, according to federal health officials.<\/p>\n Kennedy, who once led an anti-vaccine group, has been a longtime critic of vaccines. Public health experts are concerned how his views may reshape the nation’s health policy.<\/p>\n \u201cYou have to worry that he may be bringing in people who are like-minded to him,\u201d Dr. Paul Offit<\/a>, director of the Vaccine Education Center at Children\u2019s Hospital of Philadelphia and a former member of the panel, told The Post<\/em>.<\/p>\n \u201cHe just makes these decisions by himself, without any input from advisory committees or experts or professional societies,” Offit added. “He is just running roughshod over public health.\u201d<\/p>\n More information<\/strong><\/p>\n Learn more about the role of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention<\/a>.<\/p>\n