(Reuters) - U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Monday appointed five new members to the revamped advisory panel that advises the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on vaccine policy.
This comes ahead of the panel's meeting this week to review guidance on shots for hepatitis B, measles-mumps-rubella-varicella (MMRV) and COVID-19, in a closely watched session that could further reshape the federal vaccination policy.
Kennedy, a longtime vaccine critic, dismissed all 17 members of
the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) in June and installed a new, smaller panel, with members who have questioned aspects of mRNA and childhood vaccination. The committee will now have 12 members.
The five new members will be taking part in this week's meeting, said HHS spokesperson Andrew Nixon.
The committee's new members are:
Kirk Milhoan, a pediatric cardiologist who has examined cases of myocarditis related to COVID-19 vaccination. According to a news report from 2022, he backed the use of hydroxychloroquine and ivermectin to treat COVID-19 during the pandemic.
Catherine Stein, an epidemiologist at Case Western Reserve University who argued against campus COVID-19 vaccine mandates in 2022.
Hilary Blackburn, a pharmacist based in St. Louis, Missouri. She is the daughter-in-law of Republican Tennessee Senator Marsha Blackburn.
Dr. Raymond Pollak, a semi-retired transplant surgeon with a background in immunology.
Evelyn Griffin, a Louisiana-based obstetrician who has spoken at health freedom conferences.
(Reporting by Michael Erman in New Jersey and Puyaan Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli and Chizu Nomiyama)
