Ashish Jha, a former aide to the White House Covid-19 response team under President Biden, voiced strong disapproval of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s recent move to dismiss all 17 experts from the CDC’s vaccine panel.
Kennedy shared his reasoning in a recent Op-Ed for the Wall Street Journal, claiming that a complete overhaul of the panel was necessary to restore public trust in vaccine science.
Yet, during an interview with CNN’s Wolf Blitzer, Jha criticized this stance. He described Kennedy’s rationale as a collection of misleading statements regarding the experts, emphasizing their vital role in shaping vaccines available to the U.S. public.
“This is very concerning,” he noted. “We need to see who will be appointed next, but this feels like a step backwards.”
Jha expressed apprehension about Kennedy’s overall approach to vaccines, referencing what he called a lackluster response to a significant measles outbreak and his troubling comments suggesting a connection between vaccines and autism.
“Put simply, it seems like Secretary Kennedy may be trying to limit vaccine availability, not just for children but also for the elderly,” Jha remarked.
His worries extended particularly to children’s access to crucial immunizations. “Kids depend on vaccines. We’re concerned about the future of polio and measles vaccinations for the next generation,” he said. “This is a major issue we need to address.”
Kennedy, in his Op-Ed, indicated that he removed the panel members to allow the Trump administration the chance to select its own experts. He has historically criticized the Advisory Committee on Vaccination Practices, which has made vaccine advocates uneasy about the potential for more skeptical views on vaccine approval.
On the other hand, Jha disputed the notion that the panel was solely composed of Biden appointees. “Most of the individuals appointed when the Biden administration took office were originally from the Trump administration,” he explained.
He qualified that those individuals were competent experts, highlighting that the same applies to those Kennedy has now fired. “These are well-respected professionals, including nurses who vaccinate children and oncologists from Memorial Sloan Kettering,” he said. “Ultimately, it’s not about when they were appointed but whether they are qualified and free of conflicts.”
