{"id":2396,"date":"2025-06-14T11:41:39","date_gmt":"2025-06-14T11:41:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/retirednurseblog.com\/index.php\/2025\/06\/14\/rfk-jr-s-new-vaccine-advisers-include-er-doctor-who-posted-islamophobic-commentary-online-expert-witnesses-against-vaccines\/"},"modified":"2025-06-14T11:41:39","modified_gmt":"2025-06-14T11:41:39","slug":"rfk-jr-s-new-vaccine-advisers-include-er-doctor-who-posted-islamophobic-commentary-online-expert-witnesses-against-vaccines","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/retirednurseblog.com\/index.php\/2025\/06\/14\/rfk-jr-s-new-vaccine-advisers-include-er-doctor-who-posted-islamophobic-commentary-online-expert-witnesses-against-vaccines\/","title":{"rendered":"RFK Jr.\u2019s new vaccine advisers include ER doctor who posted Islamophobic commentary online, expert witnesses against vaccines"},"content":{"rendered":"<div data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/action-bar\/instances\/cmbvazkm7000r26nma6c1cyu5@published\" 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data-type=\"message\">                        Link Copied!        <\/div>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>    <button class=\"social-share_labelled-list__open\" data-type=\"open\" aria-label=\"open social share\" title=\"Open social share\">            <\/button>    <button class=\"social-share_labelled-list__close\" data-type=\"close\" aria-label=\"close social share\" title=\"Close social share\">            <\/button><\/div>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"action-bar__buttons\">            <button class=\"action-bar__button\" data-title=\"follow\">                                        Follow            <\/button>            <button class=\"action-bar__button\" data-title=\"share options\">                                <\/button>    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvazkm7000t26nm0r9qhhie@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            Among the eight people who Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced would make up his new group of outside vaccine advisers to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are an emergency physician who posted Islamophobic commentary on social media and two doctors who were paid to provide expert testimony in trials against a vaccine maker.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcgtnc00083b6mz49ouhec@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            Kennedy, who was himself an influential anti-vaccine advocate before taking the helm at the US Department of Health and Human Services this year, dismissed the previous 17-member Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, or ACIP, saying the group was \u201cplagued with conflicts of interest.\u201d He pledged that their replacements wouldn\u2019t be \u201cideological anti-vaxxers.\u201d    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcgtnc00093b6mvocbhkut@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            Some, though, have been accused of spreading false or misleading information about the safety of vaccines.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcgtnc000a3b6m6as80pba@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            Among the new members is Dr. Vicky Pebsworth, who holds a Ph.D. in nursing and public health, and who serves as volunteer director of research and patient safety for the National Vaccine Information Center, which advocates for vaccine exemptions and has argued that mRNA Covid-19 vaccines should not be recommended for anyone.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcgtnc000b3b6mcimq0aya@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            Dr. Retsef Levi, a professor of operations research at MIT, has a 2023 post pinned to the top of his account on X that says, \u201cThe evidence is mounting and indisputable that MRNA vaccines cause serious harm including death, especially among young people. We have to stop giving them immediately!\u201d despite studies showing that they are safe and effective and research showing that they have saved millions of lives.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcgtnc000c3b6muad9yk29@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            Dr. Robert Malone, an early researcher of mRNA technology, has suggested that Covid-19 vaccines may cause cancer, something regulatory agencies say is not the case. Malone also served as a paid expert witness in an antitrust lawsuit over Merck\u2019s measles, mumps and rubella vaccine, testifying that plaintiffs compensated him at a rate of $350 per hour. Malone noted at the time that his compensation did \u201cnot depend on the outcome of this litigation or my conclusions.\u201d    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcgtnc000d3b6mt5h6cvtm@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            Fellow new ACIP member Dr. Martin Kulldorff, who has called vaccines \u201cvital,\u201d served as a paid witness in a vaccine trial against Merck over the safety of its HPV vaccine, Gardasil.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcgtnc000e3b6mint163tg@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            The committee\u2019s conflict-of-interest policy says members of its work groups \u201cshould agree that they will not serve as a paid litigation consultant or expert witness in litigation involving a vaccine or manufacturer under the purview of the [work group].\u201d    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcgtnc000f3b6mnf9jelhz@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            Dorit Reiss, a professor of law at UC Law San Francisco, noted that \u201cpast expert witness work may not be a bar, but that\u2019s true of the [conflicts of interest] Kennedy used to justify dismissing\u201d the previous members.    <\/p>\n<div data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/related-content\/instances\/cmbvd0zvb003g3b6m1gl32ud5@published\" data-component-name=\"related-content\" class=\"related-content-elevate related-content--article\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n<header class=\"related-content__title related-content__title-text\" data-editable=\"content.title\">Related article<\/header>\n<section class=\"related-content__body\">\n<div class=\"related-content__image image__related-content\">\n<div data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/image\/instances\/cmbsg3rud001k26p55pzzf2ib@published\" class=\"image-elevate image__hide-placeholder\" data-image-variation=\"image\" data-name=\"2025-04-16T155032Z_2084093863_RC23ZDAHI2ZK_RTRMADP_3_HEALTH-USA-AUTISM.jpg\" data-component-name=\"image\" data-observe-resizes=\"\" data-breakpoints=\"{&quot;image--eq-extra-small&quot;: 115, &quot;image--eq-small&quot;: 300, &quot;image--eq-large&quot;: 660}\" data-original-ratio=\"0.6666666666666666\" data-original-height=\"2000\" data-original-width=\"3000\" data-url=\"https:\/\/media.cnn.com\/api\/v1\/images\/stellar\/prod\/2025-04-16t155032z-2084093863-rc23zdahi2zk-rtrmadp-3-health-usa-autism.jpg?c=original\" data-editable=\"settings\">\n<div class=\"image__container \" data-image-variation=\"image\" data-breakpoints=\"{&quot;image--eq-extra-small&quot;: 115, &quot;image--eq-small&quot;: 300, &quot;image--show-credits&quot;: 525}\">           <\/div>\n<div class=\"image__metadata-container media__metadata-container\">\n<div class=\"image__metadata media__metadata\">\n<div class=\"image__caption attribution\">    <span data-editable=\"metaCaption\" class=\"inline-placeholder\">U.S. Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. discusses the findings of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention\u2019s (CDC) latest Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring (ADDM) Network survey, during a press conference at the Department of Health and Human Services in Washington, D.C., U.S., April 16, 2025. REUTERS\/Elizabeth Frantz<\/span>  <\/div><figcaption class=\"image__credit\">Elizabeth Frantz\/Reuters<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"related-content__headline\">        <span class=\"related-content__headline-text\" data-editable=\"content.headline\">Kennedy names new members of CDC vaccine advisory panel days after removing previous advisers<\/span>      <\/p>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcgtnc000h3b6m528wcfmh@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            Several of the new appointees have been in Kennedy\u2019s orbit for years. He dedicated his 2021 book, \u201cThe Real Anthony Fauci,\u201d to the \u201cbattle-hardened cadre of heroic scientists and physicians\u201d who fought Fauci\u2019s pandemic strategies, including Kulldorff and Malone. He also listed Pebsworth on a \u201cheroic healers honor roll.\u201d    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcgtnc000i3b6mewcxz3gu@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            Others are less well-known. Emergency physician Dr. James Pagano doesn\u2019t appear to have shared his vaccine views publicly. An X account bearing his name most recently includes supportive replies to posts about President Donald Trump, Elon Musk and Kennedy.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcgtnc000j3b6mwxw6dsbv@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            About 10 years ago, Pagano posted on the account, \u201cWhat\u2019s wrong with being an islamophobe? There\u2019s so much there not to like.\u201d    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcgtnc000l3b6mmzmerwyy@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            Caleb Kieffer, a senior research analyst for the Intelligence Project at the Southern Poverty Law Center, called the post \u201cconcerning and problematic, whether it\u2019s kind of a one-off or not. \u2026 Islamophobia is a recognized form of bigotry. It was a recognized form of bigotry when this was posted in 2015, and it remains a recognized form of bigotry and problem today.\u201d    <\/p>\n<div data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/related-content\/instances\/cmbvd2qdf003k3b6m1naaaj9e@published\" data-component-name=\"related-content\" class=\"related-content-elevate related-content--article\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n<header class=\"related-content__title related-content__title-text\" data-editable=\"content.title\">Related article<\/header>\n<section class=\"related-content__body\">\n<div class=\"related-content__image image__related-content\">\n<div data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/image\/instances\/cmbv635jf000i26qo7vlp7s9e@published\" class=\"image-elevate image__hide-placeholder\" data-image-variation=\"image\" data-name=\"GettyImages-2210910482.jpg\" data-component-name=\"image\" data-observe-resizes=\"\" data-breakpoints=\"{&quot;image--eq-extra-small&quot;: 115, &quot;image--eq-small&quot;: 300, &quot;image--eq-large&quot;: 660}\" data-original-ratio=\"0.666875\" data-original-height=\"1067\" data-original-width=\"1600\" data-url=\"https:\/\/media.cnn.com\/api\/v1\/images\/stellar\/prod\/gettyimages-2210910482.jpg?c=original\" data-editable=\"settings\">\n<div class=\"image__container \" data-image-variation=\"image\" data-breakpoints=\"{&quot;image--eq-extra-small&quot;: 115, &quot;image--eq-small&quot;: 300, &quot;image--show-credits&quot;: 525}\">           <\/div>\n<div class=\"image__metadata-container media__metadata-container\">\n<div class=\"image__metadata media__metadata\">\n<div class=\"image__caption attribution\">    <span data-editable=\"metaCaption\" class=\"inline-placeholder\">WASHINGTON, DC &#8211; APRIL 22: Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. pauses while speaking at a news conference at the Health and Human Services Department on April 22, 2025 in Washington, DC. Kennedy spoke about the intent of the FDA &#8220;to phase out the use of petroleum-based synthetic dyes in the nation&#8217;s food supply.&#8221; (Photo by Andrew Harnik\/Getty Images)<\/span>  <\/div><figcaption class=\"image__credit\">Andrew Harnik\/Getty Images\/File<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"related-content__headline\">        <span class=\"related-content__headline-text\" data-editable=\"content.headline\">Kennedy\u2019s HHS sent Congress \u2018junk science\u2019 to defend vaccine changes, experts say<\/span>      <\/p>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcgtnc000m3b6m7iq26mka@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            The committee is scheduled to meet June 25 to discuss vaccines for Covid-19, cytomegalovirus, HPV, flu and other diseases. According to the Federal Register, recommendation votes are scheduled for multiple vaccines, including for the Vaccines for Children program, which provides vaccines at no cost to those whose parents or guardians may not be able to afford them.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcgtnc000n3b6muuwkprv6@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            An HHS spokesperson said the new members\u2019 ethics agreements will be made public before they start.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcgtnc000o3b6mpylisbkz@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            \u201cEvery ACIP member will be vetted in accordance with their ethics agreement before they are permitted to participate in each meeting agenda item,\u201d HHS Director of Communications Andrew Nixon said in a statement. \u201cSecretary Kennedy has replaced vaccine groupthink with a diversity of viewpoints on ACIP.\u201d    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcgtnc000p3b6mco5b4m9f@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            Here\u2019s a look at all the new committee members.    <\/p>\n<div data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/image\/instances\/cmbvd5853003o3b6mkaz0cnia@published\" class=\"image_large-elevate image_large__hide-placeholder\" data-image-variation=\"image_large\" data-name=\"vlcsnap-2025-06-12-12h52m02s180.jpg\" data-component-name=\"image\" data-observe-resizes=\"\" data-breakpoints=\"{&quot;image_large--eq-extra-small&quot;: 115, &quot;image_large--eq-small&quot;: 300, &quot;image_large--eq-large&quot;: 660}\" data-original-ratio=\"0.5625\" data-original-height=\"900\" data-original-width=\"1600\" data-url=\"https:\/\/media.cnn.com\/api\/v1\/images\/stellar\/prod\/vlcsnap-2025-06-12-12h52m02s180.jpg?c=original\" data-editable=\"settings\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n<div class=\"image_large__container \" data-image-variation=\"image_large\" data-breakpoints=\"{&quot;image_large--eq-extra-small&quot;: 115, &quot;image_large--eq-small&quot;: 300, &quot;image_large--show-credits&quot;: 525}\">           <\/div>\n<div class=\"image_large__metadata-container media__metadata-container\">\n<div class=\"image_large__metadata media__metadata\">\n<div class=\"image_large__caption attribution\">    <span data-editable=\"metaCaption\" class=\"inline-placeholder\">Dr. Joseph Hibbeln&#8217;s research focused on nutrition and psychiatry.<\/span>  <\/div><figcaption class=\"image_large__credit\">CNN<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2 class=\"subheader inline-placeholder subheader-elevate vossi-subheader vossi-subheader--size-h2\" data-editable=\"text\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/subheader\/instances\/cmbvcpp0g00323b6mm48fh3wx@published\" data-component-name=\"subheader\" id=\"dr-joseph-hibbeln\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">        Dr. Joseph Hibbeln<\/h2>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcpc76002m3b6m7mf64kyy@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            Hibbeln is a former NIH researcher focused on nutrition and psychiatry, with a particular interest in seafood: He is an unpaid adviser to Positively Groundfish, a nonprofit trade association supporting the fishing industry.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcpc76002n3b6mybasmstz@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            Though his vaccine views haven\u2019t been made clear, a paper he co-authored in 2018 notes that a connection between a form of mercury in vaccines, thimerosal, and autism \u201chas been largely repudiated.\u201d    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcpc76002o3b6mm4wljiko@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            Kennedy noted in his X post that, while at the NIH, Hibbeln \u201cled research on immune regulation, neurodevelopment, and mental health\u201d and that his work has \u201cinformed US public health guidelines, particularly in maternal and child health.\u201d    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcpc76002p3b6m0auievbl@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            Hibbeln declined to comment when reached by email.    <\/p>\n<div data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/image\/instances\/cmbvduxfp00433b6mtaelxsr8@published\" class=\"image_large-elevate image_large__hide-placeholder\" data-image-variation=\"image_large\" data-name=\"AP22315707793445.jpg\" data-component-name=\"image\" data-observe-resizes=\"\" data-breakpoints=\"{&quot;image_large--eq-extra-small&quot;: 115, &quot;image_large--eq-small&quot;: 300, &quot;image_large--eq-large&quot;: 660}\" data-original-ratio=\"0.666875\" data-original-height=\"1067\" data-original-width=\"1600\" data-url=\"https:\/\/media.cnn.com\/api\/v1\/images\/stellar\/prod\/ap22315707793445.jpg?c=original\" data-editable=\"settings\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n<div class=\"image_large__container \" data-image-variation=\"image_large\" data-breakpoints=\"{&quot;image_large--eq-extra-small&quot;: 115, &quot;image_large--eq-small&quot;: 300, &quot;image_large--show-credits&quot;: 525}\">           <\/div>\n<div class=\"image_large__metadata-container media__metadata-container\">\n<div class=\"image_large__metadata media__metadata\">\n<div class=\"image_large__caption attribution\">    <span data-editable=\"metaCaption\" class=\"inline-placeholder\">Dr. Martin Kulldorff was a co-signer of the October 2020 \u201cGreat Barrington Declaration,\u201d which argued for fewer social distancing requirements for young, healthy people rather than broad lockdowns.<\/span>  <\/div><figcaption class=\"image_large__credit\">Tom Williams\/CQ Roll Call\/AP<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2 class=\"subheader inline-placeholder subheader-elevate vossi-subheader vossi-subheader--size-h2\" data-editable=\"text\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/subheader\/instances\/cmbvcgx6700123b6mpb4a3i0g@published\" data-component-name=\"subheader\" id=\"dr-martin-kulldorff\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">        Dr. Martin Kulldorff<\/h2>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcgtnc000r3b6mcr119inp@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            Kulldorff was a prominent early critic of the US government\u2019s coronavirus response, namely broad shutdowns and school closures, and later the Covid-19 vaccines and what he has argued was federal collusion with social media companies to censor his and others\u2019 views.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcgtnc000s3b6mh066rlen@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            The Swedish epidemiologist and biostatistician teamed up with Oxford professor Dr. Sunetra Gupta and Stanford professor Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, now director of the National Institutes of Health, to write the October 2020 \u201cGreat Barrington Declaration,\u201d which argued for fewer social distancing requirements for young, healthy people rather than broad lockdowns.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcgtnc000t3b6m2cvqlysh@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            That alliance carried on as Bhattacharya assumed his federal role.    <\/p>\n<div data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/related-content\/instances\/cmbvd99p9003s3b6mlmkvybqu@published\" data-component-name=\"related-content\" class=\"related-content-elevate related-content--article\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n<header class=\"related-content__title related-content__title-text\" data-editable=\"content.title\">Related article<\/header>\n<section class=\"related-content__body\">\n<div class=\"related-content__image image__related-content\">\n<div data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/image\/instances\/cmb01lxo1001h27qhgjxx6h36@published\" class=\"image-elevate image__hide-placeholder\" data-image-variation=\"image\" data-name=\"video-source-rfk-jr-kaitlan-collins-interview-digvid.jpg\" data-component-name=\"image\" data-observe-resizes=\"\" data-breakpoints=\"{&quot;image--eq-extra-small&quot;: 115, &quot;image--eq-small&quot;: 300, &quot;image--eq-large&quot;: 660}\" data-original-ratio=\"0.5625\" data-original-height=\"1080\" data-original-width=\"1920\" data-url=\"https:\/\/media.cnn.com\/api\/v1\/images\/stellar\/prod\/video-source-rfk-jr-kaitlan-collins-interview-digvid.jpg?c=original\" data-editable=\"settings\">\n<div class=\"image__container \" data-image-variation=\"image\" data-breakpoints=\"{&quot;image--eq-extra-small&quot;: 115, &quot;image--eq-small&quot;: 300, &quot;image--show-credits&quot;: 525}\">           <\/div>\n<div class=\"image__metadata-container media__metadata-container\">\n<div class=\"image__metadata media__metadata\">\n<div class=\"image__caption attribution\">    <span data-editable=\"metaCaption\" class=\"inline-placeholder\">RFK, Jr. gives update on autism research efforts<\/span>  <\/div><figcaption class=\"image__credit\">CNN<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"related-content__headline\">        <span class=\"related-content__headline-text\" data-editable=\"content.headline\">Kennedy pushes autism study deadline, calls on farmers to support MAHA agenda<\/span>      <\/p>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcgtnc000v3b6mo8z8t2jd@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            Kennedy also seemed to suggest in April that Kulldorff was part of the agency\u2019s effort to research the causes of autism.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcgtnc000w3b6mm6pnu6n9@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            \u201cThis is all being run by Jay Bhattacharya and by, I think, Martin Kulldorff, maybe also working on this, on designing the grant proposals,\u201d Kennedy said April 16.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcgtnc000x3b6mnepjr35z@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            Asked by reporters a few days later about Kulldorff\u2019s level of involvement in the autism initiative, Bhattacharya declined to discuss \u201cany personnel decisions specifically\u201d but added that \u201cthis is public knowledge. I\u2019m very close friends with Martin, and we talk all the time.\u201d    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcgtnc000y3b6mbespfg4z@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            Kulldorff wrote in a commentary in the urban policy magazine City Journal that \u201cvaccines are a vital medical invention\u201d but that clinical trials for Covid-19 shots were not properly designed. He also said he has \u201cspent decades studying drug and vaccine adverse reactions without taking any money from pharmaceutical companies.\u201d    <\/p>\n<h2 class=\"subheader inline-placeholder subheader-elevate vossi-subheader vossi-subheader--size-h2\" data-editable=\"text\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/subheader\/instances\/cmbvchc8i00153b6mtwp2u4sh@published\" data-component-name=\"subheader\" id=\"dr-retsef-levi\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">        Dr. Retsef Levi<\/h2>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvaznbi00003b6m8t40rd6u@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            Levi is a professor of operations management at MIT and trained as a mathematician. His bio on the MIT website says he studies food supply chains. He also spent nearly 12 years as an intelligence officer in the Israeli Defense Forces.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvck8qh001c3b6mkv6s6xfl@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            \u201cI also have been conducting research specifically on the COVID-19 vaccines,\u201d he wrote.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvck8qh001d3b6m4z1obi5l@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            In 2022, Levi co-authored a study that looked at the relationship between Covid-19 vaccination rates in Israel and emergency calls for heart problems in teens and young adults. Levi and his co-authors reported a 25% increase in these heart-related emergencies in the early months of 2021 compared with 2019 through 2020. They concluded that this increase was not due to a wave of Covid-19 illnesses \u2014 which can cause heart problems \u2014 but instead was associated with the timing of the first and second doses of mRNA vaccines in this age group.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvck8qh001e3b6mwtpagyan@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            Observational studies like this one can be misleading because while they may show that two things happen at the same time, they can\u2019t prove that one caused the other. In order to prove that vaccines caused an increase in heart-related emergencies in Israel, the researchers would have needed to know the vaccination status of patients in the study and to show that heart-related emergencies increased in vaccinated compared with unvaccinated individuals. The study authors didn\u2019t have that information, according to an independent fact check of the study\u2019s claims.    <\/p>\n<div data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/related-content\/instances\/cmbvd1kpc003i3b6mx3xh4nrx@published\" data-component-name=\"related-content\" class=\"related-content-elevate related-content--article\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n<header class=\"related-content__title related-content__title-text\" data-editable=\"content.title\">Related article<\/header>\n<section class=\"related-content__body\">\n<div class=\"related-content__image image__related-content\">\n<div data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/image\/instances\/cmblbs5wo005z26p5042s3cm9@published\" class=\"image-elevate image__hide-placeholder\" data-image-variation=\"image\" data-name=\"AP25010592804676.jpg\" data-component-name=\"image\" data-observe-resizes=\"\" data-breakpoints=\"{&quot;image--eq-extra-small&quot;: 115, &quot;image--eq-small&quot;: 300, &quot;image--eq-large&quot;: 660}\" data-original-ratio=\"0.668\" data-original-height=\"2004\" data-original-width=\"3000\" data-url=\"https:\/\/media.cnn.com\/api\/v1\/images\/stellar\/prod\/ap25010592804676.jpg?c=original\" data-editable=\"settings\">\n<div class=\"image__container \" data-image-variation=\"image\" data-breakpoints=\"{&quot;image--eq-extra-small&quot;: 115, &quot;image--eq-small&quot;: 300, &quot;image--show-credits&quot;: 525}\">           <\/div>\n<div class=\"image__metadata-container media__metadata-container\">\n<div class=\"image__metadata media__metadata\">\n<div class=\"image__caption attribution\">    <span data-editable=\"metaCaption\" class=\"inline-placeholder\">FILE &#8211; A pharmacist holds a COVID-19 vaccine at a pharmacy in New York, on Sept. 24, 2024. (AP Photo\/Mary Conlon, File)<\/span>  <\/div><figcaption class=\"image__credit\">Mary Conlon\/AP<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"related-content__headline\">        <span class=\"related-content__headline-text\" data-editable=\"content.headline\">A \u2018detox\u2019 after Covid vaccination? Experts say it\u2019s nonsense<\/span>      <\/p>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvck8qh001g3b6m4lfrwvu3@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            More recently, Levi has co-authored a study with Florida\u2019s surgeon general, Dr. Joseph Ladapo, who in 2024 called for a halt in the use of the Covid-19 vaccine in the state, even for adults over age 65.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvck8qh001h3b6me5gdm033@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            This new study, which was posted as a preprint \u2014 meaning it hadn\u2019t been scrutinized by outside experts or published in medical journal \u2014 compared death risks in 1.4 million Florida adults who received either the Pfizer or Moderna Covid vaccines in the year after vaccination. The study authors say that they found a higher risk of dying from any cause, and from heart-related causes, in Floridians who received Pfizer\u2019s Covid-19 vaccines than in those who received shots from Moderna and that this indicates the vaccines have different \u201cnon-specific\u201d effects.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcmtom001s3b6m8jshocg5@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            In an email, Levi said that nonspecific effects relate to \u201chealth outcomes broader than and beyond the target virus,\u201d such as deaths from any cause or heart-related deaths.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvck8qh001i3b6m92ho8l88@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            But the study didn\u2019t compare death rates in the vaccinated groups with those in people who were unvaccinated. Other studies have found that Covid-19 contributed to excess deaths during the years of the pandemic and to heart-related deaths specifically.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvck8qh001j3b6mhec5xv5f@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            The study also didn\u2019t account for different dosages in the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, noted Dr. Peter Hotez, a pediatrician and infectious disease expert who is co-director of the Center for Vaccine Development at Texas Children\u2019s Hospital. Moderna\u2019s shots had a higher dose of mRNA than Pfizer\u2019s: 100 micrograms vs. about 30 micrograms.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvck8qh001k3b6mt5qcgprx@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            If the excess deaths were caused by Covid, greater protection from the Moderna vaccines might explain the higher death risk in the Pfizer-vaccinated group, Hotez said.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvck8qh001l3b6mqiwj3ssx@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            When asked whether the different dosing of mRNA in the vaccines might account for the findings, Levi wrote, \u201cI think that the hypothesis that Moderna has protective effects against non-COVID deaths and even against cardiovascular deaths, while cannot be fully dismissed, is highly implausible, and not supported by evidence.\u201d    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvck8qh001m3b6m25xn90zj@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            In fact, Hotez said, it is supported by evidence.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvck8qh001n3b6mvu6k5a68@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            Hotez said in an email that this kind of messaging \u201ccherry picks a weakly supported factoid, and blows it up until it defies reality but supports their false narrative, while simultaneously ignoring a mountain of counter evidence.\u201d    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvck8qh001o3b6mnhk1gc0e@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            The study authors used the findings to try to sow doubt about the vaccines.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvck8qh001p3b6mrdj2nd2u@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            In a social media post, Ladapo wrote, \u201cDid your doctor tell you that you might be more likely to die if you took Pfizer instead of Moderna? That\u2019s what we found in Florida, and other studies have shown similar results. The system is rotten and we need more honest scientists.\u201d    <\/p>\n<div data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/image\/instances\/cmbverns6000y3b6mia65cmkm@published\" class=\"image_large-elevate image_large__hide-placeholder\" data-image-variation=\"image_large\" data-name=\"AP25055262645537.jpg\" data-component-name=\"image\" data-observe-resizes=\"\" data-breakpoints=\"{&quot;image_large--eq-extra-small&quot;: 115, &quot;image_large--eq-small&quot;: 300, &quot;image_large--eq-large&quot;: 660}\" data-original-ratio=\"0.666875\" data-original-height=\"1067\" data-original-width=\"1600\" data-url=\"https:\/\/media.cnn.com\/api\/v1\/images\/stellar\/prod\/ap25055262645537.jpg?c=original\" data-editable=\"settings\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n<div class=\"image_large__container \" data-image-variation=\"image_large\" data-breakpoints=\"{&quot;image_large--eq-extra-small&quot;: 115, &quot;image_large--eq-small&quot;: 300, &quot;image_large--show-credits&quot;: 525}\">           <\/div>\n<div class=\"image_large__metadata-container media__metadata-container\">\n<div class=\"image_large__metadata media__metadata\">\n<div class=\"image_large__caption attribution\">    <span data-editable=\"metaCaption\" class=\"inline-placeholder\">Although Dr. Robert Malone made some key early innovations in mRNA, he has argued in recent years that mRNA-based Covid-19 vaccines are risky and that drug regulators too rapidly authorized their use.<\/span>  <\/div><figcaption class=\"image_large__credit\">Zach D Roberts\/NURPHO\/Associated Press<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2 class=\"subheader inline-placeholder subheader-elevate vossi-subheader vossi-subheader--size-h2\" data-editable=\"text\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/subheader\/instances\/cmbvcq2x000383b6mvg29s8x6@published\" data-component-name=\"subheader\" id=\"dr-robert-malone\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">        Dr. Robert Malone<\/h2>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcpc76002d3b6m2eelfles@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            Although Malone made some key early innovations in mRNA and its potential use in drug therapies, the biochemist has argued in recent years that mRNA-based Covid-19 vaccines are risky and that drug regulators too rapidly authorized their use.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcpc76002e3b6me7xz7law@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            In 2023, Malone told House representatives during an event on Covid-19 vaccine injury led by Georgia Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene that he believes mRNA shots can cause cancer, a claim that is not backed by peer-reviewed scientific literature and the FDAand the National Cancer Institute say there is no evidence of a link.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcpc76002f3b6mcbs7vfkr@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            Malone\u2019s criticisms extend beyond mRNA immunizations. In April, he suggested that a number of measles cases in the current outbreak were caused by the vaccines themselves \u2013 although the CDC says they are rare breakthrough cases due to community spread, not cases from shots. In December, he wrote that early polio shots caused cancer because of contamination with the simian 40 virus. The CDC has said that although that virus has caused cancer in some animals, there is no evidence that it caused human cancers.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcpc76002g3b6mgwyfldzu@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            More recently, Malone served as a senior medical adviser to Independent Medical Alliance, formerly known as the Frontline COVID-19 Critical Care Alliance, a nonprofit that pushed back on vaccine requirements and touted unproven coronavirus treatments such as ivermectin.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcpc76002h3b6mqhd29j54@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            The group celebrated Malone\u2019s appointment to the panel Wednesday. Asked whether it had any input with HHS on the new ACIP members, IMA President and Chief Medical Officer Dr. Joseph Varon said in an email that the group \u201cregularly communicates with HHS on public health issues, including vaccine policy. While specifics aren\u2019t disclosed, it\u2019s part of their mission to guide such processes.\u201d    <\/p>\n<div data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/image\/instances\/cmbvd47ol003m3b6mhm1lz5vu@published\" class=\"image_large-elevate image_large__hide-placeholder\" data-image-variation=\"image_large\" data-name=\"Untitled-4.jpg\" data-component-name=\"image\" data-observe-resizes=\"\" data-breakpoints=\"{&quot;image_large--eq-extra-small&quot;: 115, &quot;image_large--eq-small&quot;: 300, &quot;image_large--eq-large&quot;: 660}\" data-original-ratio=\"0.560625\" data-original-height=\"897\" data-original-width=\"1600\" data-url=\"https:\/\/media.cnn.com\/api\/v1\/images\/stellar\/prod\/untitled-4-20250612191746645.jpg?c=original\" data-editable=\"settings\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n<div class=\"image_large__container \" data-image-variation=\"image_large\" data-breakpoints=\"{&quot;image_large--eq-extra-small&quot;: 115, &quot;image_large--eq-small&quot;: 300, &quot;image_large--show-credits&quot;: 525}\">           <\/div>\n<div class=\"image_large__metadata-container media__metadata-container\">\n<div class=\"image_large__metadata media__metadata\">\n<div class=\"image_large__caption attribution\">    <span data-editable=\"metaCaption\" class=\"inline-placeholder\">Dr. Cody Meissner previously served on the CDC advisory committee from 2008 to 2012.<\/span>  <\/div><figcaption class=\"image_large__credit\">CNN<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2 class=\"subheader inline-placeholder subheader-elevate vossi-subheader vossi-subheader--size-h2\" data-editable=\"text\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/subheader\/instances\/cmbvcphah002z3b6mwfdzj22i@published\" data-component-name=\"subheader\" id=\"dr-cody-meissner\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">        Dr. Cody Meissner<\/h2>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcpc76002r3b6m0zfmh5pa@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            Of all the new appointees, Dr. Cody Meissner has the most vaccine expertise. He is a pediatric infectious disease expert at Dartmouth University who also has a long history of government service.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcpc76002s3b6mnvy8c2uy@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            He previously served on ACIP from 2008 to 2012 and served on the group of independent experts who advised the FDA on its vaccine decisions during the pandemic. He\u2019s also been a member of vaccine advisory boards, including for the American Academy of Pediatrics, and was the chair of the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcpc76002t3b6mu8udl6me@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            He has co-authored dozens of studies and position statements on vaccines.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcpc76002u3b6mozvjyh1y@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            During the pandemic, he co-authored an editorial in The Wall Street Journal with Dr. Marty Makary, who is now commissioner of the FDA, arguing against the use of masks for kids. He recently told Reuters that he supports Kennedy\u2019s decision not to recommend Covid-19 vaccines for pregnant women and healthy children.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcpc76002v3b6mkbwge7bg@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            In a social media post, infectious disease expert Dr. Michael Mina called Meissner a \u201crigorous scientist and has defended vaccines\u201d and a \u201cterrific choice.\u201d    <\/p>\n<h2 class=\"subheader inline-placeholder subheader-elevate vossi-subheader vossi-subheader--size-h2\" data-editable=\"text\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/subheader\/instances\/cmbvcpvh200353b6m9bvd6pq3@published\" data-component-name=\"subheader\" id=\"dr-james-pagano\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">        Dr. James Pagano<\/h2>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcpc76002j3b6mhj7vdik7@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            Kennedy\u2019s post about Pagano notes that he\u2019s a board-certified emergency medicine physician with more than 40 years of experience, including service on hospital committees, and is a strong advocate for evidence-based medicine. He appears to be licensed in both California and Florida.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcpc76002k3b6mdkd8mty3@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            In posts on a blog linked to the X account with his name, Pagano wrote in 2017 that it was a \u201cdisappointment\u201d that Republicans failed to repeal and replace Obamacare, and he advocated for \u201ctransparent, cost-based pricing\u201d in health care.    <\/p>\n<h2 class=\"subheader inline-placeholder subheader-elevate vossi-subheader vossi-subheader--size-h2\" data-editable=\"text\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/subheader\/instances\/cmbvcos8y001x3b6mrka5vqs4@published\" data-component-name=\"subheader\" id=\"dr-vicky-pebsworth\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">        Dr. Vicky Pebsworth<\/h2>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvchiem00183b6m5775ze5q@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            Pebsworth is a registered nurse and has a doctorate in health services organization and policy. She has worked in health care for more than 45 years, according to a brief bio that Kennedy posted to X. She\u2019s a regional director for the National Association of Catholic Nurses.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcpc76001z3b6m8suq295i@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            She has served as a consumer representative to the FDA\u2019s Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee, or VRBPAC, and on subcommittees for HHS\u2019s National Vaccine Advisory Committee, along with other federal and congressional appointments.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcpc7600203b6mcqugvw39@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            She has been a board member of the National Vaccine Information Center, a group that says it \u201cis dedicated to preventing vaccine injuries and deaths through public education and advocating for informed consent protections in medical policies and public health laws.\u201d Articles and videos on its website say that vaccine injuries are common while the benefits of immunizations are questionable, call for more study of vaccines on the childhood schedule and promote the false idea that vaccines cause autism.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcpc7600213b6mlxqgzuza@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            As part of that group, Pebsworth made \u201cAsk Nurse Vicky\u201d videos talking about vaccine injuries and informed consent. In one of the videos, she shared that she believes her son was injured by vaccines he received during a routine doctor\u2019s visit when he was 15 months old.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcpc7600223b6my8ufzx0p@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            In 2009, disgraced British physician Andrew Wakefield introduced Pebsworth\u2019s son before he sang and played keyboards at an autism dinner.  Wakefield helped cause a worldwide panic in 1998 after he published a study suggesting that vaccines cause autism, but many subsequent studies have disproven the link. He was stripped of his medical license in 2010. Wakefield called Pebsworth \u201cmy great friend.\u201d    <\/p>\n<div data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/image\/instances\/cmbvd6n5u003q3b6mi4gd92gj@published\" class=\"image_large-elevate image_large__hide-placeholder\" data-image-variation=\"image_large\" data-name=\"Untitled-4.jpg\" data-component-name=\"image\" data-observe-resizes=\"\" data-breakpoints=\"{&quot;image_large--eq-extra-small&quot;: 115, &quot;image_large--eq-small&quot;: 300, &quot;image_large--eq-large&quot;: 660}\" data-original-ratio=\"0.5625\" data-original-height=\"900\" data-original-width=\"1600\" data-url=\"https:\/\/media.cnn.com\/api\/v1\/images\/stellar\/prod\/untitled-4-20250612193546793.jpg?c=original\" data-editable=\"settings\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n<div class=\"image_large__container \" data-image-variation=\"image_large\" data-breakpoints=\"{&quot;image_large--eq-extra-small&quot;: 115, &quot;image_large--eq-small&quot;: 300, &quot;image_large--show-credits&quot;: 525}\">           <\/div>\n<div class=\"image_large__metadata-container media__metadata-container\">\n<div class=\"image_large__metadata media__metadata\">\n<div class=\"image_large__caption attribution\">    <span data-editable=\"metaCaption\" class=\"inline-placeholder\">Dr. Michael Ross announced last month that he had joined a Maryland biotech company.<\/span>  <\/div><figcaption class=\"image_large__credit\">WJLA<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2 class=\"subheader inline-placeholder subheader-elevate vossi-subheader vossi-subheader--size-h2\" data-editable=\"text\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/subheader\/instances\/cmbvcqcgo003b3b6mv40iey9f@published\" data-component-name=\"subheader\" id=\"dr-michael-ross\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">        Dr. Michael Ross<\/h2>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcpc7600253b6m69a1ue6b@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            Kennedy listed Dr. Michael Ross as a clinical professor at George Washington University and Virginia Commonwealth University, although Ross is not currently employed at either institution.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcpc7600273b6muact4m2t@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            A spokesperson for GWU said Ross began working at the university in 1979, but he has not had a faculty appointment there since 2017. His LinkedIn lists his work there ending in May 2025.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcpc7600283b6m80bzpw9t@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            The Virginia-based obstetrics and gynecology physician announced a month ago that he had joined Manta Pharma, a Maryland biotech firm focused on AI-based delivery of therapies for autoimmune diseases, diabetes, drug addiction and HIV\/AIDS.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcpc7600293b6m5hcp5xdh@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            Ross\u2019 other current employer, private equity group Havencrest Capital Management, describes him as a \u201cserial CEO\u201d who has served on the boards of multiple private health care companies.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcpc76002a3b6m6hqyr8nr@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            On his LinkedIn page, Ross says that while CEO of a generic pharmaceutical company, he engineered the acquisition of a stem cell company \u201cand an investment in a vaccine company.\u201d Ross previously served as president of CPL Inc., the North American division of Indian generic drugmaker Cadila Pharmaceutical, and was a board member of the Generic Pharmaceutical Association.    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmbvcpc76002b3b6meaebbniv@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">            Ross did not respond to a request for comment on the vaccine company investment and potential recusals while serving on ACIP.    <\/p>\n<\/p>\n<div>This post appeared first on cnn.com<\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Vaccines Respiratory viruses Prescription drugs Disability issues See all topics Facebook Tweet Email Link Link Copied! Follow Among the eight people who Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced would make up his new group of outside vaccine advisers to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are an emergency physician who posted Islamophobic commentary on &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2397,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"loftocean_post_primary_category":0,"loftocean_post_format_gallery":"","loftocean_post_format_gallery_ids":"","loftocean_post_format_gallery_urls":"","loftocean_post_format_video_id":0,"loftocean_post_format_video_url":"","loftocean_post_format_video_type":"","loftocean_post_format_video":"","loftocean_post_format_audio_type":"","loftocean_post_format_audio_url":"","loftocean_post_format_audio_id":0,"loftocean_post_format_audio":"","loftocean-featured-post":"","loftocean-like-count":0,"loftocean-view-count":459,"tinysalt_single_post_intro_label":"","tinysalt_single_post_intro_description":"","tinysalt_hide_post_featured_image":"","tinysalt_post_featured_media_position":"","tinysalt_single_site_header_source":"","tinysalt_single_custom_site_header":"0","tinysalt_single_custom_sticky_site_header":"0","tinysalt_single_custom_sticky_site_header_style":"sticky-scroll-up","tinysalt_single_site_footer_source":"","tinysalt_single_custom_site_footer":"0","footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2396","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-health-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/retirednurseblog.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2396","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/retirednurseblog.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/retirednurseblog.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/retirednurseblog.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/retirednurseblog.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2396"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/retirednurseblog.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2396\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/retirednurseblog.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2397"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/retirednurseblog.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2396"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/retirednurseblog.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2396"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/retirednurseblog.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2396"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}