Kennedy to nominate seven new ACIP advisers, shaping vaccine policy

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is preparing to nominate seven new advisers to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's vaccine advisory committee, a move that public health officials and lawmakers say could further reshape U.S. vaccine policy as states push to loosen school immunization requirements. The reported list of prospective members, disclosed by a physician’s newsletter and confirmed to reporters by multiple people familiar with the matter this week, includes clinicians and researchers who have publicly questioned vaccine safety or testified in vaccine-injury litigation.

The advisory body, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, or ACIP, issues recommendations that guide which vaccines are routinely used in the United States and determine coverage requirements for insurers and government programs. Kennedy drew sharp criticism in June after he abruptly dismissed all 17 sitting ACIP members, citing conflicts of interest, and then appointed a new cohort that included several critics of widely accepted vaccine science. At a Senate Finance Committee hearing Thursday, Kennedy defended his actions and rejected accusations that his...