RFK Jr. moves to broaden CDC vaccine panel eligibility after federal judge found new members unqualified

## Summary
Health Care RFK Jr. moves to broaden CDC vaccine panel eligibility after federal judge found new members unqualified Comments: by Joseph Choi - 04/07/26 3:33 PM ET Comments: Link copied by Joseph Choi - 04/07/26 3:33 PM ET Comments: Link copied NOW PLAYING Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s amended charter for a vaccine advisory committee was published Monday and is set to go into effect soon, but there are currently no members after a federal judge effectively nullified those handpicked by the secretary . There is currently no functioning committee due to the expired charter, though the standing committee had already been blocked last month by a federal judge, who determined Kennedy’s complete remaking of the organization failed to abide by federal law. Comments: Link copied More Health Care News See All Health Care Supreme Court stirs free speech debate with ‘conversion therapy’ ruling by Joseph Choi 10 hours ago Health Care / 10 hours ago Technology How your smart phone could help your motion sickness in moving vehicles by Juan Cisneros 3 days ago Technology / 3 days ago Health Care Recall impacts over 3.1 million eye drop products distributed nationwide: FDA by Matthew Self and Alix Martichoux 4 days ago Health Care / 4 days ago Health Care Trump signs order imposing 100 percent tariff on brand name drugs by Joseph Choi 5 days ago Health Care / 5 days ago See All Video/Hill.TV See all Hill.TV See all Video THE HILL TV Rising: April 7, 2026 by TheHill.com 04/07/26 12:25 PM ET THE HILL TV / 4 hours ago THE HILL TV Rising: April 6, 2026 by TheHill.com 1 day ago THE HILL TV / 1 day ago THE HILL TV Rising: April 3, 2026 by TheHill.com 4 days ago THE HILL TV / 4 days ago See all Hill.TV See all Video Top Stories See All House Democrats call for Trump’s removal over threat against Iran by Emily Brooks 3 hours ago House / 3 hours ago See All Most Popular Democrats call for Trump’s removal over threat against Iran Spanberger drop in approval rating 'stunning': Sabato China, Russia sink UN vote on Strait of Hormuz; 10 countries join US in support Graham: Iran will suffer 'massive military attack' Tuesday night without ...

## Article Content
Health Care
RFK Jr. moves to broaden CDC vaccine panel eligibility after federal judge found new members unqualified
Comments:
by
Joseph Choi
- 04/07/26 3:33 PM ET
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by
Joseph Choi
- 04/07/26 3:33 PM ET
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NOW PLAYING
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s amended charter for a vaccine advisory committee was published Monday and is set to go into effect soon, but there are currently no members after a federal judge effectively nullified those
handpicked by the secretary
.
On April 6, Kennedy’s amended charter for the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) was
published in the Federal Register
. Kennedy’s charter renewal broadens the criteria for membership to the committee.
The previous charter
, which expired Wednesday, specified that members are to have “expertise in the use of vaccines and other immunobiologic agents in clinical practice or preventive medicine, have expertise with clinical or laboratory vaccine research, or have expertise in assessment of vaccine efficacy and safety.”
The updated charter published this week states that “aspects that are considered at the time
of candidate screening and review” will now involve “geographical balance” and a “balance of specialty areas” that can include toxicology, immunology, pediatrics, consumer issues and academic perspective.
Publishing a charter is not the same as filing it. The charter will likely be filed next week given the requirement of a seven-day notice prior to filing.
There is currently no functioning committee due to the expired charter, though the standing committee had already been
blocked last month
by a federal judge, who determined Kennedy’s complete remaking of the organization failed to abide by federal law. This resulted in all ACIP meetings, including one meant to happen last month, being indefinitely put on hold.
The committee had voted in favor of recommendations to no longer give birth doses of the hepatitis B vaccine; to delay the combined measles, mumps, rubella and varicella vaccine; and to no longer recommend the COVID-19 vaccine for everyone 6 months and older but to leave it to “individual-based decision making.”
U.S. District Judge Brian E. Murphy, an appointee of former President Biden, found that most of the members Kennedy chose lacked “any meaningful experience in vaccines” and found the few that had relevant experience lacked the qualifications to constitute “expertise.”
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## Expert Analysis

### Merits
N/A

### Areas for Consideration
- Comments: Link copied More Health Care News See All Health Care Supreme Court stirs free speech debate with ‘conversion therapy’ ruling by Joseph Choi 10 hours ago Health Care / 10 hours ago Technology How your smart phone could help your motion sickness in moving vehicles by Juan Cisneros 3 days ago Technology / 3 days ago Health Care Recall impacts over 3.1 million eye drop products distributed nationwide: FDA by Matthew Self and Alix Martichoux 4 days ago Health Care / 4 days ago Health Care Trump signs order imposing 100 percent tariff on brand name drugs by Joseph Choi 5 days ago Health Care / 5 days ago See All Video/Hill.TV See all Hill.TV See all Video THE HILL TV Rising: April 7, 2026 by TheHill.com 04/07/26 12:25 PM ET THE HILL TV / 4 hours ago THE HILL TV Rising: April 6, 2026 by TheHill.com 1 day ago THE HILL TV / 1 day ago THE HILL TV Rising: April 3, 2026 by TheHill.com 4 days ago THE HILL TV / 4 days ago See all Hill.TV See all Video Top Stories See All House Democrats call for Trump’s removal over threat against Iran by Emily Brooks 3 hours ago House / 3 hours ago See All Most Popular Democrats call for Trump’s removal over threat against Iran Spanberger drop in approval rating 'stunning': Sabato China, Russia sink UN vote on Strait of Hormuz; 10 countries join US in support Graham: Iran will suffer 'massive military attack' Tuesday night without ...

### Implications
- The previous charter , which expired Wednesday, specified that members are to have “expertise in the use of vaccines and other immunobiologic agents in clinical practice or preventive medicine, have expertise with clinical or laboratory vaccine research, or have expertise in assessment of vaccine efficacy and safety.” The updated charter published this week states that “aspects that are considered at the time of candidate screening and review” will now involve “geographical balance” and a “balance of specialty areas” that can include toxicology, immunology, pediatrics, consumer issues and academic perspective.
- The charter will likely be filed next week given the requirement of a seven-day notice prior to filing.
- This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
- Comments: Link copied More Health Care News See All Health Care Supreme Court stirs free speech debate with ‘conversion therapy’ ruling by Joseph Choi 10 hours ago Health Care / 10 hours ago Technology How your smart phone could help your motion sickness in moving vehicles by Juan Cisneros 3 days ago Technology / 3 days ago Health Care Recall impacts over 3.1 million eye drop products distributed nationwide: FDA by Matthew Self and Alix Martichoux 4 days ago Health Care / 4 days ago Health Care Trump signs order imposing 100 percent tariff on brand name drugs by Joseph Choi 5 days ago Health Care / 5 days ago See All Video/Hill.TV See all Hill.TV See all Video THE HILL TV Rising: April 7, 2026 by TheHill.com 04/07/26 12:25 PM ET THE HILL TV / 4 hours ago THE HILL TV Rising: April 6, 2026 by TheHill.com 1 day ago THE HILL TV / 1 day ago THE HILL TV Rising: April 3, 2026 by TheHill.com 4 days ago THE HILL TV / 4 days ago See all Hill.TV See all Video Top Stories See All House Democrats call for Trump’s removal over threat against Iran by Emily Brooks 3 hours ago House / 3 hours ago See All Most Popular Democrats call for Trump’s removal over threat against Iran Spanberger drop in approval rating 'stunning': Sabato China, Russia sink UN vote on Strait of Hormuz; 10 countries join US in support Graham: Iran will suffer 'massive military attack' Tuesday night without ...

### Expert Commentary
This article covers ago, trump, health topics. Areas of concern are also raised. Readability: Flesch-Kincaid grade 0.0. Word count: 837.