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EXPERTS ADVISORY
Experts from the University of Michigan are ready to comment on Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s decision to dismiss all members of the CDC’s 61-year-old Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices.
Abram Wagner, an assistant professor of epidemiology and global public health at the School of Public Health, studies vaccination initiatives. His work includes evaluations of vaccine hesitancy, effectiveness assessments, and seroepidemiological surveys. A significant aspect of his research involves creating communications to familiarize the public with new vaccines, all while minimizing the emergence of vaccine hesitancy.
“For many years, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices has functioned as an impartial, evidence-based entity guiding vaccine policy in the U.S. to safeguard children, the elderly, and those with severe chronic illnesses,” he remarked. “Vaccines have previously bridged political divides due to their cost-effectiveness and life-saving benefits. Undermining ACIP not only politicizes public health but also diminishes the institutional expertise that has protected generations of Americans.”
Wagner will act as moderator at the Society for Medical Decision Making’s event, “Understanding the ACIP: Evidence, Policy, and Practice in U.S. Vaccine Recommendations.” The event on June 30 is open to everyone and was planned before RFK Jr.’s announcement.
Contact: [email protected]
Pamela Rockwell is a professor in the Department of Family Medicine at the Medical School and serves as co-chair of the Immunization Committee at Michigan Medicine. She leads the Michigan Advisory Committee on Immunizations and has previously acted as the American Academy of Family Physicians’ liaison to the ACIP.
“The HHS secretary’s choice to remove all 17 ACIP members generates public confusion and uncertainty within the scientific community, undermining vaccine safety and public health,” she stated. “This political meddling to alter ACIP will further deteriorate public trust and confidence in the scientific validity and process of vaccine recommendations, skepticism that is currently fueled by misinformation proliferated through social media, other platforms, and officials who speak without evidence-based support.”
Contact: [email protected]
Adam Lauring serves as a professor and chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases at the Medical School. Since the onset of the COVID pandemic, his laboratory has worked with extensive teams to examine the genomic epidemiology of respiratory viruses and how effective vaccines are against them.
“This action will certainly create confusion and ultimately be harmful to public health,” he expressed. “The experts who have participated in ACIP are highly qualified in their domains. They dedicate numerous hours to meticulously assess the available evidence and deliberate over their recommendations.”
“Contrary to Secretary Kennedy’s claims, stringent conflict of interest regulations were enforced for ACIP members. Healthcare professionals, including physicians and pharmacists, rely on ACIP’s integrity for guidance on optimal patient care. Given that insurers depend on ACIP recommendations to determine which vaccines will be covered, I worry that these alterations might hinder access to vaccines across the board.”
Contact: [email protected]
Emily Martin is an associate professor of epidemiology at the School of Public Health and co-leads the Michigan Center for Respiratory Virus Research and Response as well as the Michigan Public Health Integrated Center for Outbreak Analytics and Modeling. Her research is focused on infectious diseases and respiratory viruses, such as influenza, SARS-CoV-2, and RSV, along with methods to prevent and treat infections. She is also a primary investigator for initiatives like the CDC’s U.S. Influenza Vaccine Effectiveness Network and the NIAID Centers of Excellence for Influenza Research and Response.
“Secretary Kennedy’s remarks significantly undervalue the level of expertise, training, and specialized knowledge in vaccinology and epidemiology required to serve on ACIP,” she noted. “The members of the dissolved committee were among the leading authorities in the field, bringing decades of experience in caring for various populations, including children, young adults, seniors, patients with cancer, and pregnant individuals.”
Martin urged action from Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy, who chairs the committee supervising HHS and who voted to confirm Kennedy as secretary with the assurance that ACIP would remain untouched and vaccine access would be preserved.
“(Cassidy) especially should understand the monumental challenge in reinstating this committee with equally qualified new experts and the harm that could come to the nation’s public health due to disruptions in their work,” she remarked. “To initiate this now, amidst a significant rise in measles cases not seen in decades, is deeply alarming.”
“The statements regarding the HHS decision to disband the ACIP committee meetings contain numerous factual inaccuracies. The meetings are made accessible online, permitting public access to the discussions, which are streamed live, where members candidly debate every facet of these vaccines. The thoroughness and commitment to scientific evidence in these discussions are what have established the ACIP as a highly regarded advisory body internationally. I am disheartened to witness the invaluable work of the thousands of researchers generating the evidence behind the recommendations being disregarded in such a manner.”
Contact: [email protected]
A. Mark Fendrick is a professor of internal medicine at the Medical School and a professor of health management and policy at the School of Public Health. He leads the Center for Value-Based Insurance Design and has conducted multiple studies analyzing the effects of preventive care services and the influence of out-of-pocket costs on patients’ decisions to pursue preventive care.
“Secretary Kennedy’s decision to replace all ACIP members has extensive implications, given that the vaccines endorsed by the committee must be provided at no charge to most insured Americans,” he stated. “The elimination of an ACIP recommendation could enable health insurers to impose cost-sharing on vaccines, likely resulting in reduced utilization. This may lead to a rise in cases of preventable illnesses, exacerbated health outcomes, and further financial pressure on an already strained U.S. healthcare system.”
Contact: [email protected]
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