The vaccine advisory committee has been halted, with plenty of twists and turns. And we still don’t have a CDC director.

There has been a lot going on with vaccines lately. The leader of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) said they were reconsidering all vaccines in the U.S., including shots to protect against polio. (We are really not ready for a resurgence of polio or any other infectious disease.)

A lawsuit brought by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) against the U.S. government unearthed two memos on ending the Covid vaccine recommendation for pregnant people and children. The memos relied on scant data, overlooking hundreds of studies on the benefits and safety of Covid vaccination and setting the precedent for making changes to vaccine recommendations based on ideology instead of evidence, former ACIP outside experts told me.

And just before the independent advisers planned to meet this month, a federal judge overseeing the case halted the work of the committee and all of the decisions they had made.

The appointment of a controversial slate of vaccine advisers by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. likely violated federal law, and all votes taken by the committee over the past year have been stayed, a federal judge ruled.

The unprecedented changes to routine US immunization recommendations in January, when health officials unilaterally changed one-third of the schedule, were “arbitrary and capricious” and were also blocked, the court found.

–Federal judge blocks RFK Jr’s overhaul of vaccine recommendations, The Guardian

I’m no lawyer, but it seemed simple enough to me — no more work by the 13 advisers could continue, and their previous work was overturned.

But some of the advisers were confused. Robert Malone, the now-former co-chair of ACIP and a prolific anti-vaccine conspiracist, kept posting as if he were still in the loop.

Malone posted on X on Thursday that the committee had been “disbanded.” The U.S. government is planning to “recreate a new ACIP committee, as this will take less time than would be required to file and prosecute an appeal,” Malone added.

–Confusion abounds over future of US vaccine advisory committee, The Guardian

He later doubled down and then backtracked on his statements. But one point was correct, according to a former member of the committee.

Jay Bhattacharya, the acting head of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), reportedly said officials plan to select new members for the committee because an appeal process could be lengthy.

The tumult on Thursday highlighted the “chaos and confusion, starting from the top down,” that has characterized the committee’s tenure, the former member said. “Hopefully the reconstitution will follow the law,” and the new members will be “competent scientists,” they added.

–Confusion abounds over future of US vaccine advisory committee, The Guardian

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🌡️ Podcast interlude

I recently spoke with the House of Pod-cast about all of this upheaval with ACIP, as well as the quiet walk-back on a hyped medication for autism and the ways racism is impacting all of our health in ways you might not expect. Also we talked about hot sauce.

I hate the sound of my own voice and I get incredibly nervous anytime I’m in the spotlight, but if you’re in the mood for a good podcast, give this a listen! I guess? The co-hosts were great!

🌡️ Back to the chaos

But wait! There’s more!

Last night, Malone said he had been pushed out of the committee and would not be involved in any future decisions. The future of the committee isn’t clear, and there is still a great deal of confusion about what happens next.

“It is good that Dr. Malone wishes now to decrease drama regarding vaccines,” which “contrasts” with his prior statements, said Joseph Hibbeln, a psychiatrist and nutritional neuroscientist who was also appointed to the committee in June.

“It is better to make public health decisions based on data, not drama,” Hibbeln said. “The real enemy is the unknown virus that creates the next pandemic.”

–US left without functioning vaccine panel as adviser says ‘drama distracts’, The Guardian

While the routine childhood vaccine schedule was restored by the judge’s order, some vaccines remain in limbo – especially flu and Covid shots, which receive new recommendations each time they’re updated, and the RSV shot for infants in the federal Vaccines for Children program, which covers immunizations for more than half of US children.

🌡️ What else is happening at the CDC?

Trump is expected to name a new director of the CDC today. If he doesn’t, no one else — including Bhattacharya — may work as acting director.

Bhattacharya is also head of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Here’s what sources told me when he was named to the CDC:

“He won’t actually run the CDC. Just as he doesn’t actually run NIH,” said Jenna Norton, an NIH program officer speaking in her personal capacity.

“Now, rather than largely ignoring the actual operations of one agency, he can largely ignore the actual operations of two,” said Jeremy Berg, former director of National Institute of General Medical Sciences.

“It seems the one qualification for this job is rubber-stamping RFK Jr’s agenda. He has already proven himself very capable of doing so,” said Mallory Harris, an infectious disease researcher at the University of Maryland who has followed Bhattacharya’s public statements closely.

–Experts warn NIH director now leading CDC will push ‘RFK Jr’s agenda’, The Guardian

Researchers at NIH expressed fears that key issues at both agencies would go unaddressed:

“If you’re not there, able to do that, then things are going to break. Things that are supposed to be happening won’t happen,” said Ian Morgan, a postdoctoral researcher at the NIH and a steward of NIH Fellows United-UAW 2750.

–‘How is he going to have the time?’ NIH staff voice concern as Bhattacharya takes on CDC role, The Guardian

I’ve also written recently about medical organizations filling in the gaps of vaccine oversight, and public outcry against the “prototype” for “unethical” vaccine trials under Kennedy.

Have a tip or suggestion for what I should cover? Get in touch securely via email (melodyschreiber@pm.me) or Signal (melodyschreiber.06).

Top image: Robert Malone spoke at the 2025 Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in National Harbor, Maryland. Photo by Gage Skidmore