logo
#

Latest news with #vaccineSkeptics

RFK Jr's new vaccine committee issues bombshell decision on flu shots after previous panel was fired en masse
RFK Jr's new vaccine committee issues bombshell decision on flu shots after previous panel was fired en masse

Daily Mail​

time6 days ago

  • Health
  • Daily Mail​

RFK Jr's new vaccine committee issues bombshell decision on flu shots after previous panel was fired en masse

RFK Jr.'s newly-appointed vaccine advisory panel voted to recommend Americans take flu shots without a chemical that conspiracy theorists believe causes autism. The dramatic reversal in federal vaccine guidance follows Kennedy's sweeping removal of all 17 members of the previous Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) earlier this month. Their replacements, handpicked by Kennedy and including several vaccine skeptics, cast their first major vote by a margin of 5–1 to discourage use of thimerosal-containing flu shots - a formulation used in less than 5% of doses in the U.S. Scientists have determine that the mercury-based preservative thimerosal poses no health risk and is already absent from the vast majority of vaccines. The panel's decision ignores decades of scientific consensus and comes despite the Food and Drug Administration stating clearly that thimerosal is safe and that its removal from most vaccines was a precautionary move, not one based on evidence of harm. A CDC report affirming that conclusion was removed from the committee's website ahead of Thursday's vote after Kennedy's office reportedly blocked its release. Anti-vaccine groups have for decades linked thimerosal to autism and other neurodevelopmental disorders, and Kennedy wrote a book in 2014 in which he advocated for 'the immediate removal of mercury' from vaccines. Study after study has found no evidence that thimerosal causes autism or other harm. Yet since 2001, all vaccines routinely used for US children age 6 years or younger have come in thimerosal-free formulas - including single-dose flu shots that account for the vast majority of influenza vaccinations. Anti-vaccine groups have for decades linked thimerosal to autism and other neurodevelopmental disorders, and Kennedy wrote a book in 2014 in which he advocated for 'the immediate removal of mercury' from vaccines 'There is still no demonstrable evidence of harm,' one panelist, Dr. Joseph Hibbeln, a psychiatrist formerly with the National Institutes of Health, said in acknowledging the committee wasn't following its usual practice of acting on evidence. But he added that 'whether the actual molecule is a risk or not, we have to respect the fear of mercury' that might dissuade some people from getting vaccinated. In recent days, Kennedy has posted on X about its alleged dangers. The FDA on its website says 'there was no evidence that thimerosal in vaccines was dangerous,' and that the decision to remove it previously was a precautionary measure to decrease overall exposure to mercury among young infants. Multi-dose forms of CSL's Afluria and Flucelvax as well as Sanofi's Fluzone use thimerosal as a preservative, according to the FDA's website. Sanofi said it will have sufficient supply of its flu vaccine to support customer preference for this season. CSL said it supplies a very low number of multi-dose vials of flu vaccine in response to demand. Medical groups decried the panel´s lack of transparency in blocking a CDC analysis of thimerosal that concluded there was no link between the preservative and neurodevelopmental disorders, including autism. The data had been posted on the committee's website Tuesday, but was later removed - because, according to ACIP member Dr. Robert Malone, the report hadn't been authorized by Kennedy´s office. Panel members said they had read it. The panel, called the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, voted 5-1 in three separate votes to recommend thimerosal-free shots. The now 7-person panel was installed by Kennedy earlier this month after he abruptly fired all 17 members of the the influential Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) and handpicked replacements that include several vaccine skeptics. The ACIP panel advises the CDC determine who should be vaccinated against a long list of diseases, and when. Those recommendations have a big impact on whether insurance covers vaccinations and where they're available. It typically meets three times a year and intends to conduct its next meeting in the third quarter, CDC said. 'The risk from influenza is so much greater than the nonexistent - as far as we know - risk from thimerosal. So I would hate for a person not to receive the influenza vaccine because the only available preparation contains thimerosal,' Dr. Cody Meissner, the only panel member who voted against the recommendation, said in explaining his vote. Lyn Redwood, formerly of the Kennedy-founded anti-vaccine group Children's Health Defense, gave the presentation on thimerosal, arguing that it was a neurotoxin. Redwood's presentation posted on the CDC's website earlier this week initially included a reference to a study that does not exist. The report she gave to the committee was significantly shorter, removing a slide that made a reference to that study and another saying she did not have any conflicts of interest. 'With the vote on thimerosal this afternoon, the new committee has turned the ACIP process into a farce,' said former CDC vaccine adviser Dr. Fiona Havers, who resigned last week over Kennedy's changes to vaccine policy. She said it is unprecedented to have an outside speaker present and then move immediately to a vote. Evidence is usually compiled formally by CDC and reviewed by a work group. She noted that CDC experts did not present their data publicly to refute Redwood. xCBS and The New York Times have reported that the agency hired Redwood to work in its vaccine safety office. An HHS spokesman declined to comment on whether Redwood had been hired by the CDC. While Thursday's debate involved only a small fraction of flu vaccines, some public health experts contend the discussion unnecessarily raised doubt about vaccine safety. Already, fewer than half of Americans get their yearly flu vaccinations, and mistrust in vaccines overall is growing. 'Selective use of data and omission of established science undermines public trust and fuels misinformation,' said Dr. Sean O´Leary of the American Academy of Pediatrics. He said of the new panelists, 'Nothing about their recent actions have been science-based or transparent.' The flu votes marked the final step of a two-day meeting that alarmed pediatricians and other doctors' groups, who pointed to new panelists' lack of expertise in how to properly track vaccine safety - and a shift in focus to some longtime messages of antivaccine groups. 'What should have been a rigorous, evidence-based discussion on the national vaccine schedule instead appeared to be a predetermined exercise orchestrated to undermine the well-established safety and efficacy of vaccines and fundamental basics of science,' said Dr. Jason Goldman of the American College of Physicians. Of special concern was the announcement by panel chairman Martin Kulldorff to reevaluate the 'cumulative effect' of the children's vaccine schedule - the list of immunizations given at different times throughout childhood. That reflects the scientifically debunked notion that children today get too many vaccinations, somehow overwhelming their immune system. Doctors say improved vaccine technology means kids today are exposed to fewer antigens - substances that the immune system reacts to - than their grandparents despite getting more doses. US Rep. Kim Schrier, a pediatrician and Democrat from Washington state, told reporters on Thursday that children are exposed to more antigens 'in one day of day care' than in all their vaccinations. Earlier on Thursday, the committee voted 5-2 to recommend use of Merck's recently approved RSV antibody drug Enflonsia for infants 8 months or younger whose mothers did not receive a preventive shot during pregnancy. ACIP panel member Retsef Levi raised safety concerns about the antibody drug, which were addressed by experts at the FDA and CDC. He said he would be concerned about giving the product to one of his healthy children and was one of the two votes against the recommendation. The panel's recommendations need to be adopted by either the CDC director or the Health and Human Services Secretary before becoming final. There is currently no CDC director. President Donald Trump's nominee for the post, Susan Monarez, spoke to a Senate committee on Wednesday as part of the confirmation process. Also at the ACIP meeting: The panel backed a new option to protect infants against RSV, a virus especially dangerous to babies. It voted 5-2 that a newly approved antibody shot from Merck could be used alongside two existing options. Kulldorff said the panel may look into whether hepatitis B vaccination of newborns is appropriate if the mother doesn't carry the liver-destroying virus. Pediatricians counter that babies can catch the virus in other ways, such as from other caregivers who don't know they're infected. Kennedy already sidestepped the advisory group and announced the COVID-19 vaccine will no longer be recommended for healthy children or pregnant women. But CDC scientists told the panel that vaccination is 'the best protection' during pregnancy and that most children hospitalized for COVID-19 over the past year were unvaccinated. Some advisers questioned if the CDC´s extensive tracking of vaccine safety is trustworthy.

RFK's vaccine panel to spend days discussing and voting on an ingredient we barely use anymore
RFK's vaccine panel to spend days discussing and voting on an ingredient we barely use anymore

Yahoo

time7 days ago

  • Health
  • Yahoo

RFK's vaccine panel to spend days discussing and voting on an ingredient we barely use anymore

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s vaccine advisory panel will spend days discussing and voting on an ingredient we barely use anymore. Kennedy, a vaccine skeptic, has recently overhauled the Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices, which is responsible for evaluating the safety, efficacy and clinical need of vaccines and then presenting its findings to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. He removed all 17 committee members earlier this month and replaced them with several people who have been critical of vaccines. Kennedy had said his picks were 'committed to evidence-based medicine, gold-standard science, and common sense.' The new committee members are now looking at a preservative called thimerosal, which is barely used in vaccines anymore. Thimerosal was introduced in the 1930s to prevent bacterial contamination in vaccines. The preservative began getting phased out of vaccines in the early 2000s. CNN reported that, at the time, there were concerns about whether the mercury-based preservative could cause neurotoxicity when used in childhood vaccines. Some critics suggested a link between thimerosal and autism. Kennedy was among those critics who published a book in 2014 about thimerosal, in which he rejected the findings of a 2004 Institute of Medicine report which concluded there was no 'causal relationship' between thimerosal and autism, according to CNN. He called for the 'immediate removal of mercury – a known neurotoxin – from vaccines,' in his book. The CDC said the Food and Drug Administration's recommendation to remove thimerosal from childhood vaccines was a 'precautionary measure' and that the agency found 'no evidence of harm.' The CDC also said thimerosal is safe and that there is no link between the preservative and autism. This flu season, 94 percent of flu shots did not contain thimerosal, per the CDC. CNN reported the vaccine advisory committee was to meet on Wednesday and Thursday to discuss thimerosal. They will vote on whether to ban the preservative on Thursday, per ABC News. Dr. Jason Goldman, president of the American College of Physicians and a liaison member to the vaccine advisory committee, told ABC News, 'It's just a mystery to me why they're even having this on the agenda."

Where to go for accurate, up-to-date vaccine information
Where to go for accurate, up-to-date vaccine information

Washington Post

time12-06-2025

  • Health
  • Washington Post

Where to go for accurate, up-to-date vaccine information

You're reading The Checkup With Dr. Wen, a newsletter on how to navigate medical and public health challenges. Click here to get the full newsletter in your inbox, including answers to reader questions and a summary of new scientific research. Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s decision this week to fire 17 independent experts on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's vaccine advisory panel — and replace them with people with limited expertise and questionable views — was not unexpected. In November, I warned that such a takeover and the subsequent replacement of experts with vaccine skeptics could be part of the now-Health and Human Services secretary's playbook to undermine vaccine confidence.

RFK Jr picks new US vaccine committee after sacking previous members
RFK Jr picks new US vaccine committee after sacking previous members

BBC News

time12-06-2025

  • Health
  • BBC News

RFK Jr picks new US vaccine committee after sacking previous members

US Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr has appointed eight new people to the committee that issues official government recommendations on immunisations, days after removing all 17 previous members. In an announcement on X, Kennedy, a vaccine sceptic, said reconstituting the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (Acip) was a "major step towards restoring public trust in vaccines". Kennedy said the new members "have each committed to demanding definitive safety and efficacy data before making any new vaccine recommendations."Health experts have criticised his questioning of the safety and efficacy of vaccines, although he previously told the Senate he is "not going to take them away". Kennedy named the new members as Joseph R Hibbeln, Martin Kulldorff, Retsef Levi, Robert W Malone, Cody Meissner, James Pagano, Vicky Pebsworth and Michael A Ross to the committee. Some of new members are close allies of Kennedy and have histories of vaccine praised the new members in his accouncement, saying this slate includes "highly credentialed scientists, leading public-health experts, and some of America's most accomplished physicians", he said in his post. "All of these individuals are committed to evidence-based medicine, gold-standard science, and common sense," the health secretary added. On Monday, Kennedy announced in a Wall Street Journal editorial that he was "retiring" all 17 members of the Acip over conflicts of interest. Eight of the 17 panellists were appointed in January 2025, in the last days of President Biden's noted that if he did not remove the committee members, President Trump would not have been able to appoint a majority on the panel until 2028."The committee has been plagued with persistent conflicts of interest and has become little more than a rubber stamp for any vaccine," Kennedy critics and former members said the board adhered to rigorous conflict of interest and ethical standards. Kennedy claimed that health authorities and drug companies were responsible for a "crisis of public trust" that some try to explain "by blaming misinformation or antiscience attitudes."After the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approves vaccines based on whether the benefits of the shot outweigh the risks, Acip recommends which groups should be given the shots and when, which also determines insurance coverage of the shots.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store