It’s only been one year since Robert F. Kennedy Jr. took over the Health and Human Services secretary role, and a year later, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is no longer considered a credible source by some, most notably a former employee who shared his experiences in a community briefing held by American Community Media (ACOM).
“It is absolutely heartbreaking to me to say this. I worked at the CDC for 13 years with dedicated employees. But I do not recommend looking to the CDC for information around vaccines,” stated pediatrician Dr. Richard Besser, CEO of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. speaking at a news briefing.
Last year, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. fired all 17 members of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) and replaced them with a panel of his choosing. “The new panel is loaded with anti-vaccine zealots,” noted Besser. He added that only a few of the new members have public health or vaccination expertise.
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) puts out a vaccine schedule each year. In most cases, previously, its recommendations matched those of ACIP. This year, however, AAP’s recommendations differ, most prominently on vaccines for Hepatitis A and B, Covid-19, RSV, and measles, mumps, rubella, and varicella—MMRV. Besser recommends looking at the AAP schedule rather than relying on the CDC.
ACIP Chair Dr. Kirk Milhoan has said that both polio and measles vaccines should be optional. “Neither are the threats they were several years ago due to better sanitation and other factors,” he said on the Jan. 22 episode of the podcast “Why Should I Trust You?”
For the full year of 2025, 2213 cases of measles were recorded in the John Hopkins School of Public Health vaccine tracker. The numbers include severe outbreaks in Texas, Utah, South Carolina, and Arizona.
“There are major efforts taking place around the country to remove vaccination requirements for children going to school. To me, that is one of the most frightening ideas that I’ve seen in my lifetime,” said Besser. “What it will mean is that if you’re sending your child to kindergarten and you’ve decided to vaccinate, you don’t know that they’re not going to be sitting next to a child who is unvaccinated, who could potentially give them something quite serious and severe.”
