Talk:Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices

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suggest adding information on controversies related to conflicts of interest

Controversy over alleged conflicts of interest in vaccine advisory committees

In June 2025, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. dismissed all 17 members of ACIP, arguing in an op-ed for The Wall Street Journal that the committee was compromised by financial conflicts of interest. He cited a 2009 inspector general’s report which he said showed that 97 % of members had conflicts.^[1]

Experts and fact-checkers disputed this characterization. Former CDC Director Tom Frieden, who received the 2009 report while in office, explained that the 97 % figure referred to incomplete paperwork—such as missing signatures—rather than actual financial ties. According to Frieden, “16 of those 17 people reported no conflicts of interest. One reported a conflict of interest … and so she recused herself.”^[2]

Further evidence came from a peer-reviewed study published in JAMA in August 2025, which found that conflicts of interest among ACIP members had declined sharply over the previous two decades and had been at historic lows when Kennedy dismissed the committee. The study reported that the share of members with financial conflicts dropped from 42.8 % in 2000 to just 5 % by 2024. Since 2016, the average conflict rates were 6.2 % for ACIP and 1.9 % for the FDA’s Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee (VRBPAC). Almost all interests involved research funding, and less than 1 % involved personal compensation like consulting fees from vaccine manufacturers.^[3]

In a statement to NBC News in response to the JAMA article findings, the Department of Health and Human Services did not address the apparent contradiction directly, stating only that “Secretary Kennedy is committed to eliminating both real and perceived conflicts to strengthen confidence in public health decisions”.^[4] 2600:1700:B20:26F0:F80A:5F57:F6C8:9FDC (talk) 17:51, 6 September 2025 (UTC)[reply]

I would note somewhere in there that Kennedy conceded during his Senate testimony on September 4 that some of the ACIP members that he had appointed to replace the dismissed members had previously been paid to testify as expert witnesses in litigation against the vaccine manufacturers. BD2412 T 17:58, 6 September 2025 (UTC)[reply]

Great suggestion. Will add just now and link to the video @Rich Farmbrough and ScienceFlyer:

^ Kennedy Jr., Robert F. (June 9, 2025). "HHS Moves to Restore Public Trust in Vaccines." The Wall Street Journal. (Appeared in print June 10, 2025). Link
^ “We Are Less Safe, Plain and Simple.” New York Intelligencer, interview with Tom Frieden, June 16, 2025. Link
^ Kanter GP, Mankowitz T, Lurie P (August 18, 2025). "Conflicts of Interest in Federal Vaccine Advisory Committees." JAMA. doi:10.1001/jama.2025.13245. Link
^ "Conflicts on vaccine panels were at record lows before Kennedy’s firings." NBC News. August 18, 2025. Link

[WSJ-RFKJHHS2025-1] Kennedy Jr., Robert F. (June 9, 2025). "HHS Moves to Restore Public Trust in Vaccines." The Wall Street Journal. (Appeared in print June 10, 2025). Link

[NYMagFrieden2025-2] “We Are Less Safe, Plain and Simple.” New York Intelligencer, interview with Tom Frieden, June 16, 2025. Link

[Kanter2025-3] Kanter GP, Mankowitz T, Lurie P (August 18, 2025). "Conflicts of Interest in Federal Vaccine Advisory Committees." JAMA. doi:10.1001/jama.2025.13245. Link

[NBCcoverage2025-4] "Conflicts on vaccine panels were at record lows before Kennedy’s firings." NBC News. August 18, 2025. Link

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