“Most likely aim to serve the public interest as they understand it,” he wrote. “The problem is their immersion in a system of industry-aligned incentives and paradigms that enforce a narrow pro-industry orthodoxy.”
Kennedy, who is currently trying to shift the national attention to his idea of clean living and higher-quality foods, has a long history of advocating against vaccines, spreading misinformation and disinformation about the lifesaving shots. However, a clearer explanation of Kennedy’s war on vaccines can be found in his rejection of germ theory. In his 2021 book that vilifies infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci, he bemoaned germ theory as “the pharmaceutical paradigm that emphasized targeting particular germs with specific drugs rather than fortifying the immune system through healthy living, clean water, and good nutrition.”
As such, he rails against the “$1 trillion pharmaceutical industry pushing patented pills, powders, pricks, potions, and poisons.”
In Kennedy’s op-ed, he indicates that new ACIP members will be appointed who “won’t directly work for the vaccine industry. … will exercise independent judgment, refuse to serve as a rubber stamp, and foster a culture of critical inquiry.”
It’s unclear how the new members will be vetted and appointed and when the new committee will be assembled.
In a statement, the President of the American Medical Association, Bruce Scott, rebuked Kennedy’s firings, saying that ACIP “has been a trusted national source of science- and data-driven advice and guidance on the use of vaccines to prevent and control disease.” Today’s removal “undermines that trust and upends a transparent process that has saved countless lives,” he continued. “With an ongoing measles outbreak and routine child vaccination rates declining, this move will further fuel the spread of vaccine-preventable illnesses.”
This post has been updated to include a statement from the AMA. This story is breaking and may be updated further.
