After being excluded from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) vaccine advisory committee, a number of prominent medical organizations are speaking out.
This comes after Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. dismissed the CDC’s initial panel of independent experts, causing a major upheaval in recent weeks. Kennedy replaced them with a fresh group of advisors, many of whom have openly questioned the necessity or safety of vaccines.
As non-voting liaison members of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), representatives from significant medical associations have traditionally provided perspectives and independent knowledge in a range of medical specialties. However, in a joint statement, a number of those groups now claim that they have been excluded from the process of evaluating scientific data and formulating recommendations for vaccines.
The American Academy of Pediatrics, the American College of Physicians, the American Medical Association, and the National Medical Association were among the eight professional associations that signed the declaration.
In an interview with ABC News, an HHS official supported the reform: Asking the difficult issues was restricted under the previous ACIP due to external pressure to conform to vaccine dogma. Bias, influence, and conflicts of interest plagued the former ACIP members. We are making good on our pledge to the American people that those conflicts will never again influence vaccine recommendations.
The message went on to say that experts would still be added based on their pertinent experience and knowledge, not on the company they work for.
The medical groups responded that they received an email late Thursday informing them of their withdrawal. They characterized the decision as worrisome and extremely disappointing.
Their joint statement came to the conclusion that it is reckless, harmful to the health of our country, and would further erode clinician and public confidence in vaccinations to remove our extensive medical experience from this crucial and once transparent process.
