Latest news with #DrMartinKulldorff
Yahoo
26-06-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
RFK Jr's vaccine panel to review long-approved jabs for children
The new members of US Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr's panel of vaccine advisers will review long-approved immunisation schedules for children and teens. The seven members of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (Acip) met for the first time on Wednesday, weeks after Kennedy ousted all 17 of their predecessors. The Acip recommends who should be vaccinated and when to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Ahead of the meeting, public health experts and politicians raised concerns about the qualifications of the new members - several of whom are vaccine critics. The health secretary sparked uproar when he removed all 17 members of the ACIP on 9 June, and then hand-picked eight new members to serve on the panel - including one who dropped out hours before the first meeting. Wednesday's meeting began with the new chair Dr Martin Kulldorff telling the panel that he was fired from his job as a professor at Harvard University because he refused to get a Covid-19 vaccine. Dr Kulldorff also announced the panel would launch new working groups to examine child vaccination schedules and vaccines that were approved seven or more years ago. He said it would be reviewed whether it was "wise" to give the hepatitis B vaccines to newborns, a shot proven safe and effective at preventing the infection that causes liver cancer. Vaccine schedules for measles would also be reviewed, he said. Examining vaccines licensed seven or more years ago raises concerns, because it suggests the process to approve them was flawed, said Bill Hanage, a professor of epidemiology at Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health. "I cannot think of any rational reason you would look at that and think it to be the case," he said. The panel was initially meant to vote on recommendations for shots against RSV, a respiratory virus that can be dangerous for infants, but that has been postponed. On Thursday, the group is scheduled to hear a presentation on the use of thimerosal in vaccines given by Lyn Redwood, a former leader of Children's Health Defense, an anti-vaccine group Kennedy used to run. Ms Redwood has been hired by the CDC to work in its vaccine safety office, according to the BBC's US partner CBS News. The decision for the panel to discuss thimerosal, a mercury-based preservative that has not been used in most vaccines for decades, is perplexing, Dr Hanage said. In the past, he said, Acip's members had a wide range of vaccine expertise and would scrutinise vaccine recommendations for months. This time, Kennedy chose for the panel "people that are like him - people in the past who have shown an anti-vaccine bias", said Dr Paul Offit, a former Acip member and director of the Vaccine Education Center at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. One of the new Acip members was Dr Michael Ross, however he withdrew this week ahead of a review of members' financial holdings, the Department of Health and Human Services said. Kennedy's panel choices have also sparked criticism from Republican Senator Bill Cassidy, a physician who was sceptical of voting to confirm Kennedy as health secretary because of his stances on vaccines. In a post on X, Cassidy said the panel should not proceed with their meeting because of the group's small size and the lack of a CDC director in place to approve their recommendations. "Although the appointees to ACIP have scientific credentials, many do not have significant experience studying microbiology, epidemiology or immunology," he wrote. "In particular, some lack experience studying new technologies such as mRNA vaccines, and may even have a preconceived bias against them." RFK Jr appoints new US vaccine advisers after sacking committee RFK Jr sacks entire US vaccine committee
BBC News
26-06-2025
- Health
- BBC News
RFK Jr's vaccine panel to review long-approved jabs for children
The new members of US Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr's panel of vaccine advisers will review long-approved immunisation schedules for children and seven members of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (Acip) met for the first time on Wednesday, weeks after Kennedy ousted all 17 of their Acip recommends who should be vaccinated and when to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).Ahead of the meeting, public health experts and politicians raised concerns about the qualifications of the new members - several of whom are vaccine critics. The health secretary sparked uproar when he removed all 17 members of the ACIP on 9 June, and then hand-picked eight new members to serve on the panel - including one who dropped out hours before the first meeting began with the new chair Dr Martin Kulldorff telling the panel that he was fired from his job as a professor at Harvard University because he refused to get a Covid-19 vaccine. Dr Kulldorff also announced the panel would launch new working groups to examine child vaccination schedules and vaccines that were approved seven or more years ago. He said it would be reviewed whether it was "wise" to give the hepatitis B vaccines to newborns, a shot proven safe and effective at preventing the infection that causes liver schedules for measles would also be reviewed, he vaccines licensed seven or more years ago raises concerns, because it suggests the process to approve them was flawed, said Bill Hanage, a professor of epidemiology at Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health."I cannot think of any rational reason you would look at that and think it to be the case," he panel was initially meant to vote on recommendations for shots against RSV, a respiratory virus that can be dangerous for infants, but that has been postponed. On Thursday, the group is scheduled to hear a presentation on the use of thimerosal in vaccines given by Lyn Redwood, a former leader of Children's Health Defense, an anti-vaccine group Kennedy used to Redwood has been hired by the CDC to work in its vaccine safety office, according to the BBC's US partner CBS decision for the panel to discuss thimerosal, a mercury-based preservative that has not been used in most vaccines for decades, is perplexing, Dr Hanage said. In the past, he said, Acip's members had a wide range of vaccine expertise and would scrutinise vaccine recommendations for time, Kennedy chose for the panel "people that are like him - people in the past who have shown an anti-vaccine bias", said Dr Paul Offit, a former Acip member and director of the Vaccine Education Center at Children's Hospital of of the new Acip members was Dr Michael Ross, however he withdrew this week ahead of a review of members' financial holdings, the Department of Health and Human Services panel choices have also sparked criticism from Republican Senator Bill Cassidy, a physician who was sceptical of voting to confirm Kennedy as health secretary because of his stances on a post on X, Cassidy said the panel should not proceed with their meeting because of the group's small size and the lack of a CDC director in place to approve their recommendations."Although the appointees to ACIP have scientific credentials, many do not have significant experience studying microbiology, epidemiology or immunology," he wrote. "In particular, some lack experience studying new technologies such as mRNA vaccines, and may even have a preconceived bias against them."
Telegraph
12-06-2025
- Health
- Telegraph
RFK Jr appoints new vaccine committee – including vaccine sceptic doctor
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has appointed a new vaccine advisory panel, including a medical doctor who has claimed that Covid vaccines 'may damage [children's] brains, their heart, their immune system, and their ability to have children in the future.' The move comes just two days after the US health secretary unprecedentedly dismissed all 17 members of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), the body responsible for advising on vaccine recommendations to prevent and control diseases. Of the eight new members, four have actively spoken out against vaccination in some form. The most controversial pick is Dr Robert Malone, a prominent opponent of mRNA vaccines who also falsely claims to have invented the technology. While Dr Malone was involved in some of the early research on mRNA, his role was minimal at best, say experts. Dr Malone has previously stated that mass vaccination programs during the pandemic were enabled by 'mass formation psychosis,' an unrecognised medical term he coined, which he says also explains how Nazi Germany carried out the Holocaust. He was temporarily banned from X (formerly Twitter) for spreading misinformation about Covid-19, including claims that mRNA vaccines are experimental gene therapy that could cause irreparable harm, particularly to children. Also on the panel is Dr Martin Kulldorff, a former Harvard Medical School professor who was dismissed from his position in 2024. Dr Kulldorff was a key figure in the Great Barrington Declaration, an open letter published in 2020 that opposed widespread lockdowns and was widely criticised by experts as dangerous and anti-scientific. Of the panel, which includes Joseph Hibbeln, Retsef Levi, Cody Meissner, James Pagano, Vicky Pebsworth and Michael Rossm, four who have previously worked on committees associated with either the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), or the Food and Drug Administration. 'All of these individuals are committed to evidence-based medicine, gold-standard science, and common sense,' Mr Kennedy said in a post on X. It's not clear what process these figures went through, but it typically takes more than a year to be appointed to a federal advisory panel. Dr Noel Brewer, a professor in public health at the University of North Carolina who was a member of the ACIP, said it typically takes more than a year to be appointed as a member of a federal advisory panel – and that he went through a 1.5 year process to serve on ACIP. 'You apply by writing an essay,' he told the Telegraph. 'Once you're approved, you fill out maybe 20 or 30 forms. You disclose all of your financial stakes in companies and all sources of income. Then you get ethics training.' The health secretary added that the panel would attend a CDC meeting on June 25, where advisors are expected to deliberate and vote on who should receive a number of vaccines, including the flu shot, Covid-19 boosters, and vaccines for RSV, HPV, and meningococcal disease. Dr Peter Hotez, a vaccine expert and Dean for the National School of Tropical Medicine at the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, said: 'Kennedy is leading a MAHA [Make America Healthy Again] pseudoscience agenda, mostly as an economic stimulus for a very corrupt wellness/influencer industry'.
CNN
11-06-2025
- Health
- CNN
Kennedy names new members of CDC vaccine advisory panel days after removing previous advisers
Vaccines Federal agencies Respiratory virusesFacebookTweetLink Follow Just two days after retiring the entirety of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's vaccine advisory panel, US Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has appointed several prominent critics of the government's Covid-19 response to that committee. He announced eight new members of the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, or ACIP, on Wednesday. Kennedy had said Monday that the previous 17-member panel that makes recommendations on who should get vaccines and when was rife with conflicts of interest and that he would appoint new 'highly credentialed' experts in time for the panel's June 25 meeting, at which the members are expected to discuss guidance for Covid-19 and HPV shots, among others. In a statement Wednesday, Kennedy said the reassembled panel will demand 'definitive safety and efficacy data before making any new vaccine recommendations, but will also review data for the current vaccine schedule as well.' The eight new ACIP members include Dr. Robert Malone, a biochemist who made early innovations in the field of messenger RNA but in more recent years has been a vocal critic of mRNA technology in Covid-19 vaccines. The CDC recently narrowed its recommendations for mRNA Covid-19 shots, but some advocates in the Make America Healthy Again space have pressed Kennedy to go further and bar the vaccines entirely. Another new member is Dr. Martin Kulldorff, a biostatistician and epidemiologist who co-authored an October 2020 strategy on herd immunity known as the Great Barrington Declaration with Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, now director of the US National Institutes of Health. Both Malone's and Kulldorff's names were circulated early in the second Trump administration as potential advisers on ACIP or other panels, according to a person familiar with the process who requested anonymity because they weren't authorized to speak with CNN. Kennedy also chose Dr. James Pagano, an emergency medicine physician he described as a 'strong advocate for evidence-based medicine' who has served on hospital committees and medical executive boards. Dr. Retsef Levi, an MIT professor who has published studies on mRNA vaccines and cardiovascular events, is also joining the panel. Levi is a professor of operations management. Several of the new members have served in federal health agencies previously, including Dr. Joseph Hibbeln, a former acting chief of the NIH's section on nutritional neurosciences. Dr. Cody Meissner, a Dartmouth professor of pediatrics who also signed the Great Barrington Declaration, has previously served on ACIP and on the US Food and Drug Administration's Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee. Dr. Vicky Pebsworth, the Pacific region director of the National Association of Catholic Nurses, also served on the FDA committee and on a national panel reviewing the 2009 H1N1 swine flu vaccine. Dr. Michael Ross, a professor of obstetrics and gynecology at George Washington University and Virginia Commonwealth University, has previously served on the CDC's Advisory Committee for the Prevention of Breast and Cervical Cancer. Kennedy also nodded in his statement to Ross' 'continued service on biotech and healthcare boards.' The private equity company Havencrest, in which Ross is an operating partner, describes him on its site as a 'serial CEO' who has served on the boards of several biotechnology companies.
CNN
11-06-2025
- Health
- CNN
Kennedy names new members of CDC vaccine advisory panel days after removing previous advisers
Just two days after retiring the entirety of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's vaccine advisory panel, US Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has appointed several prominent critics of the government's Covid-19 response to that committee. He announced eight new members of the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, or ACIP, on Wednesday. Kennedy had said Monday that the previous 17-member panel that makes recommendations on who should get vaccines and when was rife with conflicts of interest and that he would appoint new 'highly credentialed' experts in time for the panel's June 25 meeting, at which the members are expected to discuss guidance for Covid-19 and HPV shots, among others. In a statement Wednesday, Kennedy said the reassembled panel will demand 'definitive safety and efficacy data before making any new vaccine recommendations, but will also review data for the current vaccine schedule as well.' The eight new ACIP members include Dr. Robert Malone, a biochemist who made early innovations in the field of messenger RNA but in more recent years has been a vocal critic of mRNA technology in Covid-19 vaccines. The CDC recently narrowed its recommendations for mRNA Covid-19 shots, but some advocates in the Make America Healthy Again space have pressed Kennedy to go further and bar the vaccines entirely. Another new member is Dr. Martin Kulldorff, a biostatistician and epidemiologist who co-authored an October 2020 strategy on herd immunity known as the Great Barrington Declaration with Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, now director of the US National Institutes of Health. Both Malone's and Kulldorff's names were circulated early in the second Trump administration as potential advisers on ACIP or other panels, according to a person familiar with the process who requested anonymity because they weren't authorized to speak with CNN. Kennedy also chose Dr. James Pagano, an emergency medicine physician he described as a 'strong advocate for evidence-based medicine' who has served on hospital committees and medical executive boards. Dr. Retsef Levi, an MIT professor who has published studies on mRNA vaccines and cardiovascular events, is also joining the panel. Levi is a professor of operations management. Several of the new members have served in federal health agencies previously, including Dr. Joseph Hibbeln, a former acting chief of the NIH's section on nutritional neurosciences. Dr. Cody Meissner, a Dartmouth professor of pediatrics who also signed the Great Barrington Declaration, has previously served on ACIP and on the US Food and Drug Administration's Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee. Dr. Vicky Pebsworth, the Pacific region director of the National Association of Catholic Nurses, also served on the FDA committee and on a national panel reviewing the 2009 H1N1 swine flu vaccine. Dr. Michael Ross, a professor of obstetrics and gynecology at George Washington University and Virginia Commonwealth University, has previously served on the CDC's Advisory Committee for the Prevention of Breast and Cervical Cancer. Kennedy also nodded in his statement to Ross' 'continued service on biotech and healthcare boards.' The private equity company Havencrest, in which Ross is an operating partner, describes him on its site as a 'serial CEO' who has served on the boards of several biotechnology companies.
