The Republican senator who chairs the committee overseeing health issues publicly undermined the vaccine committee selected by Health and Human Services Secretary (HHS) Robert F. Kennedy Jr., urging that physicians ignore its recommendations Thursday.
Sen. Bill Cassidy, chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, expressed concerns with the âlack of scientific process being followedâ for an anticipated meeting of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) on Sept. 18.
âSerious allegations have been made about the meeting agenda, membership, and lack of scientific process being followed for the now announced September ACIP meeting,â the statement reads. âThese decisions directly impact childrenâs health and the meeting should not occur until significant oversight has been conducted. If the meeting proceeds, any recommendations made should be rejected as lacking legitimacy given the seriousness of the allegations and the current turmoil in CDC leadership.â
HHS didnât immediately respond to a request for comment.
The ACIP is made up of outside scientists who discuss epidemiological studies, weigh the benefits and side effects reported in clinical trials and make recommendations to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on the routine vaccination schedules for children and adults. The ACIPâs recommendations inform which shots are reimbursed by health plans. Meetings are open to the public.
Kennedy Jr. ordered a âclean sweepâ of the committee in June that removed all 17 sitting members.
Requests to Cassidy for further clarification about which scientific processes were not being followed did not receive an immediate reply. The ACIP charter states that the committee can have up to 19 members. The current ACIP roster consists of just seven people, according to the CDC website.
When Kennedy fired the previous ACIP members, he cited the need for members appointed by the Trump administration, noting the committeeâs four-year terms would allow Biden administration appointees to continue to wield their influence. Kennedy also noted committee members often have ties to the pharmaceutical industry, citing a 2000 congressional investigation.
Cassidy cast a deciding vote in favor of Kennedyâs confirmation to lead HHS following contentious confirmation hearings. Cassidy said in a speech on the Senate floor in February that Kennedy had pledged to not change the ACIP in order to secure the vote.
Cassidyâs statement does not specify who made the âserious allegationsâ against Kennedyâs management of the ACIP.
But the announcement follows a high-profile showdown between Kennedy and CDC Director Susan Monarez, the precise causes of which remain unclear.
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation CEO Robert Besser, a former acting CDC director, said to severalmedia outlets that he had spoken with Monarez Wednesday and that the spat in part involved Monarez signaling she wouldnât greenlight every decision by the ACIP.
CDC directors typically follow the recommendations of the ACIP but can overrule them. Rochelle Walensky, former President Joe Bidenâs CDC director, overruled the ACIP to recommend COVID-19 booster shots for healthy adults in fall 2021.
Monarezâs attorney Mark S. Zaid declined to provide further details about the source of the rift between Monarez and Kennedy to the Daily Caller News Foundation.
Both Zaid and Monarezâs other attorney, Abbe David Lowell, have frequently represented opponents of President Donald Trump. Zaid previously represented the intelligence official whose whistleblower complaint was central to Trumpâs 2019 impeachment inquiry. Lowell represents New York Attorney General Letitia James and previously represented Hunter Biden and former Trump administration staffer Miles Taylor.
Monarezâs resume includes stints at the research and development arms of HHS â the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) and Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) â and the Department of Homeland Security. Her close association with the public health establishment generated concern among some of the secretaryâs allies.
In a resignation letter posted to X Wednesday, former CDC National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases Director Demetre Daskalakis said that his departure was prompted by changes in recommendations around COVID-19 vaccines for children and the ACIP overhaul. Daskalakis alleged that CDC had not been informed of the committeeâs overhaul before Kennedy announced it on social media.
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