Introduction to the Controversy
U.S. health officials have told more than a half-dozen of the nation’s top medical organizations that they will no longer help establish vaccination recommendations. The government told the organizations on Thursday via email that their experts are being disinvited from the workgroups that have been the backbone of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices.
Affected Medical Organizations
The organizations include the American Medical Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and the Infectious Diseases Society of America. “I’m concerned and distressed,” said Dr. William Schaffner, a Vanderbilt University vaccine expert who for decades has been involved with ACIP and its workgroups. He said the move will likely propel a confusing fragmentation of vaccine guidance, as patients may hear the government say one thing and hear their doctors say another.
Reasoning Behind the Decision
One email said the organizations are “special interest groups and therefore are expected to have a ‘bias’ based on their constituency and/or population that they represent.” A federal health official on Friday confirmed the action, which was first reported by Bloomberg. The decision was the latest development in what has become a saga involving the ACIP.
Background on the ACIP
The committee, created in 1964, makes recommendations to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on how vaccines that have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration should be used. CDC directors have traditionally almost always approved those recommendations, which are widely heeded by doctors and greenlight insurance coverage for shots.
Recent Changes and Controversies
U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was a leading voice in the anti-vaccine movement before becoming the U.S. government’s top health official, and in June abruptly fired the entire ACIP after accusing them of being too closely aligned with manufacturers. He handpicked replacements that include several vaccine skeptics. The workgroups typically include committee members and experts from medical and scientific organizations. At workgroup meetings, members evaluate data from vaccine manufacturers and the CDC, and formulate vaccination recommendation proposals to be presented to the full committee.
Reaction from Medical Organizations
Senator Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin blasted HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. during Tuesday’s hearing on cuts to medical research grants. “Is funding for cancer centers DEI? Because you’re holding up $47 million in cancer center support grants at nine cancer centers in eight states.” Workgroup members are vetted for conflicts of interest, to make sure than no one who had, say, made money from working on a hepatitis vaccine was placed on the hepatitis committee, Schaffner noted. Also disinvited from the groups were the American Academy of Family Physicians, the American College of Physicians, the American Geriatrics Society, the American Osteopathic Association, the National Medical Association, and the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases.
Joint Statement from Disinvited Organizations
In a joint statement Friday, the AMA and several of the other organizations said: “To remove our deep medical expertise from this vital and once transparent process is irresponsible, dangerous to our nation’s health, and will further undermine public and clinician trust in vaccines.” They urged the administration to reconsider the move "so we can continue to feel confident in its vaccine recommendations for our patients.” Some of the professional organizations have criticized Kennedy’s changes to the ACIP, and three of the disinvited groups last month joined a lawsuit against the government over Kennedy’s decision to stop recommending COVID-19 vaccines for most children and pregnant women.
Future of ACIP Workgroups
In a social media post Friday, one of the Kennedy-appointed ACIP members — Retsef Levi — wrote that the working groups “will engage experts from even broader set of disciplines!” Levi, a business management professor, also wrote that working group membership “will be based on merit & expertise — not membership in organizations proven to have (conflicts of interest) and radical & narrow view of public health!” HHS officials have not said which people are going to be added to the ACIP workgroups.
Conclusion
The removal of top medical organizations from the ACIP workgroups has sparked controversy and concern among health professionals. The decision is seen as a move that could lead to confusion and fragmentation in vaccine guidance, ultimately affecting public trust in vaccines. As the situation develops, it remains to be seen how the new composition of the ACIP workgroups will impact vaccination recommendations and public health policies.
FAQs
- Q: Which medical organizations were disinvited from the ACIP workgroups?
- A: The organizations include the American Medical Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Infectious Diseases Society of America, the American Academy of Family Physicians, the American College of Physicians, the American Geriatrics Society, the American Osteopathic Association, the National Medical Association, and the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases.
- Q: Why were these organizations disinvited?
- A: According to an email, the organizations are considered “special interest groups” expected to have a bias based on their constituency or population they represent.
- Q: What impact could this decision have on vaccine guidance?
- A: The move is likely to propel a confusing fragmentation of vaccine guidance, as patients may hear the government say one thing and hear their doctors say another.
- Q: What has been the reaction from the disinvited organizations?
- A: The organizations have issued a joint statement expressing concern and distress over the decision, calling it irresponsible and dangerous to the nation’s health.
