Health secretary RFK Jr appoints two vaccine skeptics to CDC advisory panel

The Guardian - World NewsCenter-LeftEN 3 min read 100% complete by Marina DunbarJanuary 14, 2026 at 06:24 PM

AI Summary

medium article 3 min

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. appointed two new members, Drs. Adam Urato and Kimberly Biss, to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) vaccine advisory committee (ACIP). This follows Kennedy's earlier replacement of the entire panel in June. Both new appointees are obstetrician-gynecologists who have publicly questioned established scientific views on vaccines, particularly COVID-19 vaccines, and antidepressant use during pregnancy. Dr. Biss has stated that she was not previously anti-vaccine but now is, citing concerns about menstrual irregularities following COVID-19 vaccination. ACIP advises the CDC on vaccine recommendations, and Kennedy stated that the new members bring necessary scientific credentials and integrity to the committee.

Key Entities & Roles

Key Player Opposition Context

Trump administration 30% Bayfront Health 30% Vaccine Safety Research Foundation 40% Republican Party 40% Harvard Medical School 40% Tufts University 40% United States 50% Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices ×260% Adam Urato ×270% Kimberly Biss ×680% Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ×280% Robert F Kennedy Jr ×690%

Keywords

vaccine skepticism 90% cdc advisory panel 80% vaccine safety 70% robert f kennedy jr 70% acip 60% covid-19 vaccine 60% pregnancy 50% menstrual irregularities 50% scientific views 40%

Sentiment Analysis

Negative

Score: -0.30

Source Transparency

Source

The Guardian - World News

Political Lean

Center-Left (-0.40)

Far LeftCenterFar Right

Classification Confidence

90%

This article was automatically classified using rule-based analysis. The political bias score ranges from -1 (far left) to +1 (far right).

Topic Connections

Explore how the topics in this article connect to other news stories

Network visualization showing 51 related topics

View Full Graph

vaccine skepticism cdc advisory panel vaccine safety robert f kennedy jr acip covid-19 vaccine pregnancy menstrual irregularities scientific views

Explore Full Topic Graph