RFK Jr. taps eight new members for CDC's vaccine advisory panel

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has tapped eight new members to join the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s independent vaccine advisory committee, just two days after he fired the previous slate.

The new members include well-known vaccine skeptics and others who have been critical of Covid vaccines or pandemic interventions like lockdowns.

Kennedy, a high-profile figure in the anti-vaccine movement, said Wednesday on X that the members would convene June 25 for a scheduled meeting. He referred to them as “highly credentialed scientists, leading public-health experts, and some of America’s most accomplished physicians.”

The list includes Dr. Robert Malone, an anti-vaccine activist who suggested this year, without evidence, that recent pediatric deaths from measles were due to medical error, and Vicky Pebsworth, director of research and patient safety at the National Vaccine Information Center, considered a leading source of misinformation about vaccines.

Historically, members of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, known more commonly as ACIP, have undergone an extensive vetting process before they were appointed that can take months to years. The panel typically consists of 15 or more members, meaning the meeting in two weeks would be about half the normal size. It was not clear whether Kennedy intended to appoint additional members.