Politics

Kennedy Sparks Debate Over Vaccine Advisory Board Conflicts

Independent Report – U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s unexpected decision to remove the national vaccine advisory board has drawn attention to potential conflicts of interest among the group responsible for recommending vaccines to the American public. Kennedy claimed that the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), which has 17 members, was “plagued with persistent conflicts of interest,” primarily because many experts had received significant funding from pharmaceutical companies. However, he did not provide specific examples of conflicts for any individual member or explain how these conflicts may have affected particular vaccine recommendations.

Kennedy Unexpected Removal Raises Concerns

Members of the committee maintain that their work with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is subject to strict scrutiny. They undergo thorough vetting regarding financial ties and are required to abstain from voting on any vaccine if a conflict of interest exists. This includes vaccines made by the same company or any competing product. The CDC’s official records show that at least one departing panel member recused herself from voting due to such conflicts.

Dr. Oliver Brooks, a dismissed board member and retired chief medical officer at Watts Healthcare in Los Angeles, disputed Kennedy’s claims. Brooks said there is no evidence that all 17 members of the advisory board have conflicts of interest. He warned that Kennedy’s decision could undermine public confidence both in the advisory process and in vaccines themselves.

A review by Reuters of the Open Payments database, which tracks industry payments to healthcare providers, revealed that six of the removed advisers received very small sums—$80 or less—from pharmaceutical companies between 2017 and 2023. Seven others earned between $4,000 and $55,000 over the same period for activities such as consulting, speaking, travel, or meals. Some had also been involved in industry-funded research projects worth millions of dollars.

Dr. Brooks received nearly $44,000 in payments from the pharmaceutical company Sanofi, mainly in 2017 and 2018, but none after 2020. He became a vaccine adviser in 2021 and reported no conflicts that would have prevented him from voting. Brooks emphasized that the panel’s primary goal is to prevent diseases that vaccines can stop. Sanofi declined to comment on the matter.

Not all vaccine advisers are covered by the Open Payments reporting system, as some are not health professionals subject to mandatory disclosure.

Also Read : Consumer Prices Rise Slightly Amid Tariff Concerns

Details on Dr. Brooks’ Payments

Kennedy himself has faced scrutiny over his financial ties. During his confirmation hearing, he was questioned about potential conflicts due to his involvement in litigation against Merck over the Gardasil vaccine, which prevents certain cancers caused by human papillomavirus. Kennedy stated he would transfer this financial interest to his adult son to avoid conflicts.

Recently, Kennedy announced new members for the vaccine advisory panel. Some of these new appointees had received minor reimbursements for meals. While others had no reported payments or were outside the scope of the database.

In 2009, a federal inspector general criticized the CDC for weak enforcement of conflict-of-interest disclosures among its advisory panels. More recent research suggests that conflicts among vaccine board members have decreased over time. Dr. Genevieve Kanter, a public policy professor at the University of Southern California who studies government health adviser conflicts. Noted that in 2000, about 43% of panel members reported conflicts when voting on vaccines. In the last decade, this figure has dropped to around 5%.

Kanter emphasized the importance of transparency in how Kennedy’s new advisory board will be vetted. She warned against replacing one set of conflicts with another, particularly if new members have financial interests in alternative treatments to vaccines.

Importance of Transparency for New Panel

Members of ACIP must divest stock holdings in vaccine manufacturers and cannot engage in consulting or receive travel, food, or royalties from vaccine companies before joining the panel. Similar restrictions apply to their family members. However, advisers may continue to participate in vaccine clinical trials funded by industry. Such as research grants often support their salaries. They must file annual disclosures and recuse themselves from votes where conflicts arise.

The California Department of Public Health, whose immunization chief Dr. Robert Schechter was also removed by Kennedy. He stated that ACIP members are thoroughly screened for significant conflicts through a lengthy selection process.

One of the dismissed members, Dr. Bonnie Maldonado, a pediatric infectious diseases expert at Stanford University, has led numerous vaccine studies worldwide. Her research received $4.65 million from Pfizer between 2021 and 2023 for studies on vaccines against COVID-19, RSV, and other diseases. She also received payments from Pfizer. And also Merck but abstained from voting on COVID-19 vaccine recommendations in June 2024 due to a declared conflict. However, she participated in a related vote in October 2024.

Noel Brewer, a public health professor at the University of North Carolina and not a clinician. This is not included in the Open Payments system. In a 2017 publication, he disclosed receiving research grants from Merck, Pfizer, and GSK and serving on a paid advisory board for Merck. Though payment details were not specified.

The pharmaceutical companies involved did not immediately comment on these disclosures. This ongoing debate highlights the challenge of balancing expertise, transparency, and public trust in vaccine advisory processes.

Also Read : Apple EnergyKit: Powering Smarter Homes

desain ruangpapagencetMarieFranceMedia Mutiara NusantaraSports DailyBahis WonCity Career ServicesLi Cheng Wu XianBCC Ai piao5Dragons E-SportsKuliner Nusantarasolo leveling season 2 sub indogacorone punch man season 3 sub indoKAIJU NO. 8 THE GAMEMelfrisTattoo Supreme IndonesiaPortal KulinerTribun Bolabandar maxwinSahabat NestleExplore NusantaraVedit Creative Studiogacor mudah menang terpercayaThe Mini SocialMonotonixArena Gamerskingligakingligakingligabetslot88Rekomendasi FilmTeori KonspirasiPortal HiburanZippo Collectiontondemo skill s2 sub indodr stone season 4 sub indoDupont LoverKids Care IndonesiaNgabrets GamingCasio GalleryYuk Hidup SehatNarasi KehidupanIrama JiwaZona PopulerGlowstoriaThe Socialist RegisterPixie ForevergacorBlogtubersPremium Biz PostDiy Craft RecipesDizzy PTbrass house austinLink Login Alternatif ZonasixSitus Gacor Nomor 1 ResmiLIGASIX Link Login Alternatifpipemediaa7fr5 bloggeramerican party scassistive technology partnersanoboybebimibroom corn johnnyschamber lains oflondonchaville blogclub de lisacolorado actioneobd toolgarage doors and partsglobal health wiregrb projecthaberedhave seat will travelimmovestinginspa kyotojohn hawkin sunratedkhaleej times jobsleegay lordmclubworldmeet muscatinemidwest garage buildersmonika pandeynet protozopersonal cloudsrippin kitten1 buy celebrex onlinerobert drawsscreemoshahid onlinest francis luck nowsustainability pioneersthe berk shire mallthe blackmore groupthorn ville churchvisit mark twain lakeGarda MediaRadio Senda 1680Rumah JualIndependent ReportgacorOXLIGA Game Online ResmiDaftar Pilihan Situs GacorSultana RoyalDiyes internationalPasmarqueKudakyivABGXMoron CafeElm Sleepidngglink login alternatif idnggidnppRadar PuncakSuper DenoxSerbu DiskonBelanja Lebih Hemat di Alfamartidnppidngg loginoxligaEl Valle GritaHorror YearbookIdnplay NewsGang FlowKDUN RadioTech by AndroidALIVEfmFastCreaSitePrediksi SDY SGP MACAU HK dan Keluaran SDY HK SGPArcadia DailyTop Ten ThingsPlay Source InfoLestanze CafeDiesel SpecialistNGO CS TipCasal Del RavalPitch WarsMeikartagrandal mas residenceAS Roma Forza RomaTutorials PhotoshopPolitikosGayPriderSitus TogelHongkong PoolsMondoRealityaroma masakhidangan istimewainspirasi masakinfo alam indonesiaPT. Tri Karya Cemerlangatalayahttps://institutolobo.org.br/wan solutionfacility servicesrekomendasi balirekomendasi medanliburan pariwisatajelajah alam indonesiawisata alam indonesiacek kesehatanjlpt jakartajlpt bandungjlpt surabayajlpt medanjlpt yogyakartajlpt denpasarjlpt manadoEpiltech jlpt malangjlpt semarangjlpt makassarjlpt palembangjlpt bogorIkabi SurabayaIkabi MedanIkabi PalembangIkabi SemarangIkabi BatamIkabi PekanbaruIkabi BogorIkabi LampungIkabi MalangIkabi BalikpapanIkabi PontianakIkabi BanjarmasinIkabi DenpasarIkabi JambiIkabi SurakartaIkabi ManadoIkabi JayapuraIkabi BengkuluIkabi PaluIkabi SukabumiIkabi KendariIkabi AmbonIkabi DumaiIkabi BinjaiIkabi TegalIkabi SorongIkabi BanjarbaruIkabi Pematang SiantarIkabi SingkawangIkabi ProbolinggoIkabi Tanjung PinangTribun OtomotifTribun TrenHarley Davidson X440bentuk kekecewaan rakyat indonesiaXiaomi 17 siap bersaing dengan iphone 17Ikabi Padang SidempuanIkabi BitungIkabi PasuruanIkabi TernateIkabi GorontaloIkabi SalatigaIkabi LhokseumaweIkabi PalopoIkabi MagelangIkabi SibolgaIkabi MataramIkabi Bekasidunia edukasisolusi ekonomidunia skincarezona life styledunia mistisalam mistiskisah mistisoxligaMosa Mandirisumber misteridunia misteriberita sejarahsejarah masa laluwarisan sejarahsejarah internasionalmisteri sejarahkulit sehatdaily skinskin care hariantren skin carerahasia glowingzona musikhidup trendiarsitek modernrambut sehatrevolusi teknologidunia mahasiswateknologi otomotifBukit Podomoro JakartaLRT City Ciracascomo hacer heladosWala Meron 24 Jammahjong waysgacor luar negerigates of olympus x1000spacemanlink situs gacorhttps://www.troquedeenergia.com/https://reconciliationaccounting.com/https://makmurlux.com/akun303smart leadershttps://noithatvnn.com/https://www.makemoneymakecents.com/sahabat sehatGaya Hidup Sehatdokter keluargaSolusi Kulit SehatRambut Sehat BerkilauRambut Indah SehatTren Hidup SehatInspirasi Lifestyleinspirasi hidup sehatZonaMusikIndonesiaDuniaMusikHitshttps://ikabiambon.org/la/https://ikabibalikpapan.org/la/https://ikabibanjarbaru.org/la/musikkitaInovasiOtomotifRevolusiOtomotifotomotifdigitalgayarumahmurahArsitekKreatifbelajarbersamapendidikanindonesiakebun indonesiatanaman indonesiakebun mandirikarya anak indonesiaide kreatifkreatif tanpa bataskreativitaskudunia kebunhttps://lightwiresystems.com/https://capcusmurni.blog/https://serojamurni.fit/https://clbkmurni.fit/https://greenville-autorepair.com/TX Health WatchPAFI Kabupaten RiauABC del BienestarJosh ShearMedia970PanasMediaCapital PersonalCherry GamesCharleston Market ReportDigiturk BulgariaOrlando Nexus DailyDai Phat Thanh VietnamEntertaina O RamaKent Academy MiangoTwilight MovieSimple Machines ForumAffordable SpaceflightVilanoHeath Ledger CentralPilates PilaScarlot HarlotKpopStarz SmashingSalon Literario LibroamerSimpplermichaelmezonulebaksiuTEKNOKRAT MANDIRI INSTITUTERose Environmental LTDelnamliahKhasanah Sari Bakerywright printingMultan College of PhysiotherapySIPFiberPT Surya Biru Murni AcetyleneGaruda Karya MandiriPesantren Mahasiswa FIRDAUS Malang Lazismu PekalonganPromo Or idSMA Negeri 1 KalasanWright Printingserver luar negeri gacorserver luar negeri maxwinserver thailand gampang maxwinspaceman pragmatic playscatter hitam mahjong waysmahjong ways 1 dan 2KONI PusatKlik TVRISekolah Tinggi Teologia ABDI SABDASTIE BHAKTI PEMBANGUNANJurnal Universitas Hafshawaty Zainul Hasanpakai teknik kodebikin kaya kilat sekaliHampir Gancet dipelukan princeskemenangan mutlak dirayakan pemainmax menjadi saksi pecahnyaRahasia pemicu bonus besarridho tidak menyangka modalTreasure wild pola tarantulaultimate langka prioritaskan wildwaspada ambruknya master blackjackbara kuasai kombinasi hastagkuantitas game pg softmod spin nakal gatepencapaian financial ala wildsecurity pesantren memaximalkan trikdibuat heboh oleh manuverhari dari game microgaminghari ini claim cashbackjenius untuk ubah saldomodal mimim untung maksimalrasakan sensasi wild sempurnawild berderet tak disangkaKeunggulan Xiaomi 17 ProAbadikan Semua Momen SpesialmuAkhir Dramatis Jadi Penutup Grand FinalBanjir Peminat Berkat Performa StabilnyaCara Ampuh Memisahkan Data Colok JituBukan Sekedar JanjiKalahkan Ribuan Pesaing Lewat Pola Tarik UlurNilai Dukungan RTP Pada Twins BanditoRahasia Menyusun Kombinasi Angka BBFSTerima Kontrak Kerjasama Bareng SBO SportsTerbutakan oleh Obsesinya Menjadi Mahjong KingsAdu Peruntunganmu Lewat Kombinasi UnikBerbekal Kode Alam dari Kitab Mimpi Semar HitamMampu Jabarkan Sistem PerhitunganManfaat Utama Deposit Super Wild BonanzaPahami Aturan Penting Sebelum All InPerforma Tangguh Oppo F6 ProRasio Perbandingan Data PeluangStrategi Ampuh Menganalisa Nilai Kartu BankerTutorial Mudah Menebak Pola BBFS