Several leading medical organizations are speaking out after being cut off from participating in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) vaccine advisory committee.
The development follows a significant shake-up in recent weeks, when Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. dismissed the CDC’s original panel of independent experts. In their place, Kennedy appointed a new slate of advisers — many of whom have publicly questioned the safety or necessity of vaccines.
Historically, representatives from major medical groups have served as non-voting liaison members of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), offering insights and independent expertise across various medical specialties. But in a joint statement, several of those groups now say they’ve been shut out “from the process of reviewing scientific evidence and informing vaccine recommendations.”
A total of eight professional organizations signed the statement, including the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American College of Physicians, the American Medical Association, and the National Medical Association.
An HHS spokesperson, responding to ABC News, defended the overhaul: “Under the old ACIP, outside pressure to align with vaccine orthodoxy limited asking the hard questions. The old ACIP members were plagued by conflicts of interest, influence, and bias. We are fulfilling our promise to the American people to never again allow those conflicts to taint vaccine recommendations.”
The statement continued, asserting: “Experts will continue to be included based on relevant experience and expertise, not because of what organization they are with.”
In their response, the medical groups said they were notified of their removal via email late Thursday. They described the decision as both “deeply disappointing and alarming.”
“To remove our deep medical expertise from this vital and once transparent process is irresponsible, dangerous to our nation’s health, and will further undermine public and clinician trust in vaccines,” their joint statement concluded.
