Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced Wednesday the appointment of eight new members to the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), days after firing all 17 sitting members.
Kennedy said the move was necessary to “re-establish public confidence in vaccine science.” But several of the new appointees have previously questioned COVID-19 vaccine safety or endorsed contrarian pandemic views, raising alarm among public health experts.
New members include biostatistician Martin Kulldorff and pediatrician Cody Meissner—both signers of the controversial Great Barrington Declaration—and physician Robert Malone, a vocal COVID vaccine critic who has promoted unproven treatments like ivermectin.
Kennedy denied the appointees are “ideological anti-vaxxers,” calling them “highly credentialed” and committed to “gold-standard science.” The committee is scheduled to meet June 25 to review COVID vaccine guidance.
The abrupt overhaul drew criticism from groups like the American Nurses Association, warning it could further damage vaccine trust. It also contradicted Kennedy’s earlier Senate testimony that he wouldn’t change ACIP’s makeup.
The ACIP influences CDC vaccine policy and insurance coverage nationwide.
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