Kennedy's vaccine panel signals skepticism, change

What happened

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's newly reconfigured vaccine advisory board held its first meeting Wednesday and signaled a more skeptical approach to the decades-old U.S. immunization system.

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. handpicked the seven new members of the influential Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices after firing all 17 previous members earlier this month. Several of the new appointees openly share the anti-vaccine views Kennedy has previously promoted.

Who said what

ACIP members immediately "alarmed pediatricians" by "announcing inquiries into some long-settled questions about children's shots," The Associated Press said, including the "cumulative effect" of vaccines and a hepatitis B shot credited with nearly eliminating the liver-destroying disease in infants. ACIP recommendations guide insurance coverage and state vaccination requirements.

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It took "just minutes" for the "skeptical panelists" to signal their intention to "upend longstanding vaccine recommendations," particularly "those pertaining to children," The New York Times said. The "drama" started even before the meeting began, with Senate health committee chair Bill Cassidy (R-La.) calling for its delay and an eighth member quitting the panel. CDC members were also informed that Kennedy had hired Lyn Redwood, a former president of the anti-vaccine group he founded, to work in the agency's vaccine safety office, The Washington Post said.

What next?

Redwood will present recommendations at today's ACIP session on a little-used flu shot that contains thimerosal, a mercury-based preservative removed from nearly all U.S. vaccines in 2001 that she, Kennedy and other anti-vaccine advocates have falsely linked to autism. The American Academy of Pediatrics, which took the unusual step of boycotting the meeting, said it would continue publishing its own vaccine schedule for children independently of the ACIP.