The CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) voted Thursday, June 26, to recommend against using flu vaccines containing thimerosal — a mercury-based preservative already largely phased out of U.S. immunizations. The decision came during the committee’s first meeting since Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. replaced all 17 previous members with new appointees.
Although more than 95% of U.S. flu shots no longer contain thimerosal, the vote departed from past public health guidance, which did not discourage the preservative’s use. Manufacturers have long used thimerosal in multi-dose vials to prevent contamination.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration claims thimerosal-containing vaccines are safe and has found no evidence linking them to autism or other harm.
What concerns are experts raising about the decision?
Public health organizations, including the American Academy of Pediatrics, criticized the panel’s vote and process, warning that it could undermine trust in vaccines at a critical time.
Critics noted that the panel bypassed the CDC’s normal evidence review process and relied heavily on a presentation from Lyn Redwood, a former head of an anti-vaccine group founded by Kennedy.
Redwood, who HHS hired, spoke as a private citizen, CBS News reported.
“Giving someone like Lyn Redwood a voice at the A.C.I.P. meeting to spread misinformation about a long-settled matter of vaccine safety is yet another troubling way in which R.F.K. Jr. is inappropriately interfering with the C.D.C. vaccine policy process,” Dr. Fiona Havers said, according to the New York Times.
Dr. Cody Meissner was the lone dissenter, citing decades of data affirming thimerosal’s safety. “The ACIP makes recommendations based on scientific evidence, as much as possible, and there is no scientific evidence that thimerosal has caused a problem.”
What else did the panel recommend?
The committee also voted to recommend a new monoclonal antibody shot called Enflonsia for newborns to protect against RSV.
The vote passed 5–2 despite opposition from two Kennedy appointees who raised concerns about the drug’s clinical trial data and its potential interaction with other vaccines.
CDC and FDA officials have previously said that the shot had been thoroughly vetted and that no causal links to adverse outcomes were found.
The recommendations will not take effect unless Kennedy formally adopts them — a step public health experts say could set a precedent for further political interference in vaccine policy.
