Robert Malone, an ideological ally of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., is stepping away from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s vaccine advisory committee following a court ruling that effectively nullified the panel.
Malone was one of several picks by Kennedy in a controversial reworking of the entire Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices last year. Malone said Tuesday that he won’t be a part of any attempt to reform the panel after a feud with HHS personnel on whether the court ruling would be appealed.
A federal judge last week blocked the vaccine panel’s controversial changes to the childhood vaccine schedule and called into question the panel’s validity, essentially kneecapping it from any future actions.
[Related: Judge blocks vaccine changes by RFK Jr.’s advisory panel]
Malone posted on social media that the decision wouldn’t be appealed, which was contradicted by HHS spokeman Andrew Nixon.
“After Andrew trashing me with the press, I am done with the CDC and ACIP,” Malone said in a text message Tuesday morning. “That was the last straw.”
“Suffice to say I do not like drama, and have better things to do,” Malone added.
A physician and biochemist, Malone had questioned the severity of the COVID-19 pandemic and, according to FactCheck.org, elevated unfounded claims about the disease.
While on the panel, he supported more limited COVID-19 vaccine recommendations, arguing that Americans should be guided by consultations with health care providers rather than “propaganda, marketing and other activities that are not based in an actual, real world assessment of their risks and benefits.”
He was involved in some early research of mRNA technology and had earlier served in advisory roles for HHS and the Department of Defense, with expertise in molecular biology, immunology and vaccine development.
HHS Assistant Secretary of Public Affairs Rich Danker on Tuesday contacted CQ Roll Call alongside former ACIP Chair Martin Kulldorff, who now serves as the HHS chief science officer for the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation. Kulldorff read a statement acknowledging Malone’s departure and defending Nixon: “In light of the court ruling and the enormous amount of volunteer time provided by ACIP members to enhance public health, I can sympathize with his decision to step away. As for Andrew Nixon, I found him to be professional and honest in all his work supporting ACIP.” Kulldorff and Danker declined further comment.
Malone’s departure represents the latest drama for the panel, which began last summer when Kennedy fired all 17 committee members and replaced them with handpicked ideological allies, many of whom are vaccine skeptics.
The committee made several major changes to the childhood vaccine schedule in recent months, including removing the recommendation for the birth-dose hepatitis B vaccine, rotavirus vaccine, annual flu shot and others. Before it was kneecapped by the courts, the committee planned to continue reevaluating that schedule, a priority for Kennedy and the “Make America Healthy Again” movement.
The CDC vaccine advisory is barred from convening until a decision is reached in the court case. The committee typically develops recommendations on the use of vaccines, including new flu shots and COVID-19 boosters, after Food and Drug Administration approval. New vaccines can still go into circulation without the CDC panel’s input.
The Trump administration faces a deadline to nominate a new CDC director this week.
