#Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices

[mariacallous]

Until last week, the future of vaccination for human papillomavirus, or HPV, in the United States seemed clear.

For several years, a growing body of evidence has suggested that just a single dose of the vaccine may be as effective as two are, offering decades of protection against the virus, which is estimated to cause roughly 700,000 cases of cancer each year. More than 50 other countries have already adopted the one-dose schedule, and many experts hoped that the United States might follow suit this year.

The decision rests, primarily, on the deliberations of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, a vaccine-advisory committee to the CDC. ACIP was initially expected to put to a vote, as early as next week, the questions of HPV-vaccine dosing and, simultaneously, whether to strengthen the recommendations that advise vaccination starting at 9 years of age. Several experts told me that they had tentatively expected both motions to pass, making HPV vaccination easier, cheaper, and quicker. The HPV vaccine is one of the most powerful vaccines ever developed: It is unusual among immunizations in that it durably prevents infection and disease at rates close to 100 percent. If it was deployed more widely, “we could see the end of cervical cancer,” Kirthini Muralidharan, a global-health expert and HPV-vaccine researcher at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, told me.

That was before Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the nation’s health secretary, abruptly dismissed all 17 members of ACIP. Among their replacements—each apparently handpicked by Kennedy—are several researchers who have spread misinformation about vaccines or been embroiled in litigation against vaccine manufacturers; at least one of the new members has exaggerated the harms of the HPV vaccine specifically. Now the anticipated votes on the vaccine, among other immunizations, have been removed from the proposed agenda for ACIP’s coming meeting, leaving the fate of the vaccine far murkier.

ACIP has, for decades, been one of the world’s most respected expert panels on vaccines. The group’s charter is to rigorously evaluate the evidence on the immunizations that the FDA has green-lighted. The advice it gives the CDC then helps devise the official immunization schedule that guides how insurers cover vaccines, how states mandate immunizations in schools, and how primary-care physicians advise their patients. Only under the rarest of circumstances has a CDC director rejected the committee’s advice. Effectively, the members of ACIP “decide who gets the vaccine, at what age, and how many doses,” Noel Brewer, a vaccine expert and health-behavior researcher at UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health, who served on ACIP until last week, told me.

The group’s rigorous, data-driven approach is a primary reason the HPV-dosing strategy has yet to change. In particular, the committee was awaiting formal results from a large clinical trial in Costa Rica that has been comparing dosing strategies in adolescent girls. So far, the data, recently presented at a cancer conference, suggest that one dose is just as effective as two, the current CDC-backed regimen. Earlier this year, the ACIP working group focused on HPV vaccines was leaning toward supporting the dose drop, Brewer, who was part of that group, told me. The proposal to routinely recommend the vaccine as early as 9 years of age, he added, seemed likely to pass, too. (Currently, the CDC allows for HPV vaccination as early as 9 years of age, but only actively recommends it starting at 11 years of age.)

Those amendments to HPV-vaccination guidelines would make the shot simpler to get, for a wider range of children—which could dramatically increase its uptake, Gretchen Chapman, a health-psychology researcher at Carnegie Mellon University, told me: “The more you can make getting vaccinated easy and convenient, the higher vaccination rates will be.” Only about 60 percent of 13-to-17-year-olds in the U.S. are up-to-date on their HPV shots—a gap that public-health experts consider a major missed opportunity. That the shot can almost perfectly prevent infection and disease for decades is “like the fantasy we have of vaccines,” Brewer told me. Its rock-solid protection “just keeps rolling.”

But the new ACIP may see matters differently. Kennedy has yet to fill the committee’s roster, but his initial picks include individuals who appear to have a beef with HPV immunization. One member, Vicky Pebsworth, co-wrote an analysis detailing adverse events following HPV vaccination for an anti-vaccine organization, which she serves on the board of. Another new member, Martin Kulldorff, provided expert testimony in cases against the drugmaker Merck over its Gardasil vaccine, the only HPV shot available in the U.S., and received thousands of dollars from plaintiffs who accused the company of downplaying the vaccine’s risks. (A judge in North Carolina overseeing one of those cases ruled in favor of Merck; another, in Los Angeles, is going to trial later this year.) And Kennedy, an environmental lawyer, has himself been instrumental in organizing the litigation campaign against Merck—and has described Gardasil as “the most dangerous vaccine ever invented.” (Under pressure from senators, Kennedy has said that he will relinquish any proceeds from these lawsuits to his son.) He has also falsely claimed that the HPV vaccine—which data show has dramatically reduced rates of cervical cancer in the U.S. and elsewhere—“actually increases the risk of cervical cancer.” (HHS, the CDC, Pebsworth, and Kulldorff did not respond to a request for comment.)

At some point, the current ACIP might see fit to soften the existing guidelines, or even advise the CDC to remove the vaccine recommendations for certain groups. If it does, those decisions could prompt insurers to stop covering the vaccines, or disincentivize health-care providers from offering them to families. The committee could also remove the vaccine from the Vaccines for Children program, which provides shots to kids whose parents cannot afford them. (An initial agenda for the ACIP meeting scheduled to start on Wednesday initially included a recommendation vote for the HPV vaccine, as well as a vote on its status in Vaccines for Children; those items no longer appear in the CDC’s draft agenda.)

A few of the experts I spoke with raised the possibility that this new ACIP might still amend the HPV-vaccine recommendation to a single dose, but with a different rationale: not because the members are swayed by the data on its effectiveness, but because they’d support any option that cleaves a vaccine dose from the immunization schedule. Kennedy, too, seems likely to back such a move. “Any window to roll back the number of times a child receives a vaccine injection, he’s going to push for,” Alison Buttenheim, a behavioral scientist at Penn Nursing, told me.

The net effect might at first seem the same: Fewer doses of the HPV vaccine would be on the schedule. But the reasoning behind a decision can matter just as much as the end result. Robert Bednarczyk, an epidemiologist and vaccine researcher at Emory University’s Rollins School of Public Health, noted that, although much of the evidence so far has pointed toward one dose being enough, the case isn’t yet a slam dunk: Some of the trials investigating the single-dose strategy are using different formulations of Gardasil, or non-Gardasil brands, which may perform differently. (The Costa Rica trial, notably, does include the same Gardasil recipe used in the U.S.) And some experts still wonder if the protection offered by a single shot may fade faster than a double-dose regimen—a more challenging aspect of vaccine protection to assess without many years of follow-up. If that’s the case, prematurely dropping the second dose could later force the U.S. to add a shot back into the vaccine schedule—a confusing message that could erode trust. The last thing the country needs now is “another hit to public confidence around vaccines,” Bednarczyk said.

How Kennedy and his allies publicly justify these choices, then, matters quite a bit. Vaccines, on the whole, are now being billed by the government not as vital, lifesaving tools, but as unnecessary risks, deserving of additional scrutiny. Of the multitude of vaccines on the childhood-immunization schedule, many people already see HPV “as the troublesome one,” Brewer told me. Its ability to prevent cancer has been underemphasized; some critics have stoked unfounded fears that, because the vaccine guards against a sexually transmitted virus, it will increase promiscuity. And unlike other vaccines recommended in the early adolescent years, such as the meningococcal vaccine and the Tdap booster—which are required by most or all states for entry into secondary school—HPV is mandated for preteens in only a handful of jurisdictions.

All of these pressures make the vaccine more vulnerable to being rejected, Chapman told me. And should Kennedy’s new vaccine team openly discard HPV doses primarily for the sake of dropping a shot, that could set a precedent—for removing other vaccines from the schedule, in part or entirely.

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Jessica Glenza at The Guardian:

Robert F Kennedy Jr, the US health secretary, named eight new vaccine advisers this week to a critical Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) panel after firing all 17 experts who had held the roles. New members of the panel include experts who complained about being sidelined, a high-profile figure who has spread misinformation and medical professionals who appear to have little vaccine expertise. Kennedy made the announcement on social media.

“All of these individuals are committed to evidence-based medicine, gold-standard science, and common sense,” Kennedy said in his announcement. “They have each committed to demanding definitive safety and efficacy data before making any new vaccine recommendations.” Formally called the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), the panel advises the CDC on how vaccines should be distributed. Those recommendations in effect determine the vaccines Americans can access. This week, Kennedy also removed the career officials typically tasked with vetting ACIP members and overseeing the advisory group, according to CBS News.

HHS head Robert F. Kennedy Jr. made 8 appointments to the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), and almost all of them have had anti-vaxxer and/or COVID mitigations-skeptical views, especially Retsef Levi, “Dr.” Robert Malone, and Martin Kulldorff.

See Also:

Health Policy Watch: COVID Critics Dominate New US Vaccine Advisory Committee

[saywhat-politics]

RFK Jr. boots all members of the CDC's vaccine advisory committee

The Department of Health and Human Services is removing all 17 members of a key advisory committee to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced the move on Monday afternoon in an opinion piece published by The Wall Street Journal. He also announced plans to put new committee members in place.

The Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices plays a key role in setting national vaccine policy, including the schedule of routine vaccines for children and adults. The gutting of the current committee removes an important check on changes in the administration's approach to vaccine policy.

[darkmaga-returns]

by Brenda Baletti, Ph.D.Suzanne Burdick, Ph.D. – originally published by The Defender – Children’s Health Defense association website

All liknks to previous Gospa News investigations have benne added in the aftermath 

U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced late today that the HHS is retiring all 17 members of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) vaccine advisory committee.

RFK jr: “Bold step in restoring public trust by totally reconstituting the Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices (ACIP)”

Kennedy announced the move in an op-ed in The Wall Street Journal. “Today, we are taking a bold step in restoring public trust by totally reconstituting the Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices (ACIP),” he wrote.

Kennedy noted that some of the current ACIP members were appointed in the final moments of the Biden administration. “Without removing the current members, the current Trump administration would not have been able to appoint a majority of new members until 2028,” he wrote.

The ACIP committee is responsible for shaping U.S. vaccine policy by issuing recommendations that become official CDC policy once adopted by the CDC director. ACIP is described as an independent, nonfederal expert body of professionals with clinical, scientific and public health expertise.

[crows-are-gathering]

The decision directly contradicts a promise Mr. Kennedy made to Senator Bill Cassidy, Republican of Louisiana, during his confirmation hearings, when he said he would not alter the panel, called the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices.

“Of course, now the fear is that the ACIP will be filled up with people who know nothing about vaccines except suspicion,” Senator Cassidy wrote on X.

[covid-safer-hotties]

Also preserved in our archive

By Mary Van Beusekom, MS

A pair of new studies in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report highlight low influenza, COVID-19, and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine coverage in US adults, including those in nursing homes, this fall.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC's) Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommends that everyone aged 6 months and older receive an updated COVID-19 vaccine and an annual flu vaccine. It also recommends that all nursing home residents aged 60 years and older receive a single lifetime dose of RSV vaccine.

35% and 18% vaccinated against flu, COVID For the first study, investigators from the CDC analyzed data from the National Immunization Survey-Adult COVID Module, a random phone survey that tracks flu, COVID-19, and RSV vaccination uptake in US adults as of early November. The team also interviewed unvaccinated participants about their intent to receive the vaccines.

By November 9, 34.7% of adults reported having received a flu vaccine dose, and 17.9% had received an updated COVID-19 vaccine for the 2024-25 respiratory virus season. A total of 39.7% of adults aged 75 years and older and 31.6% of those aged 60 to 74 at high risk for severe RSV had ever received an RSV vaccine.

Uptake varied by jurisdiction and demographic characteristics and was lowest among younger adults and those with no health insurance.

Despite low vaccine coverage, 35% of adults said that they definitely or probably would receive or were unsure about receiving the flu vaccine, and 41% said the same about the COVID-19 vaccine, meaning they hadn't ruled out vaccination. Forty percent of adults aged 75 years and older reported that they definitely or probably would receive or were unsure about receiving the RSV vaccine.

The proportion of respondents who said that they probably or definitely wouldn't be vaccinated was highest for COVID-19 (41.6%) and lowest for RSV (20.3% among those aged 75 years and older and 14.8% among those aged 60 to 74).

In comparison, flu vaccine coverage for the current season was 0.9 percentage points higher than during the corresponding period in 2023-24 (34.7% vs 33.8%) and 3.7 percentage points higher (58.6% versus 54.9%) in those aged 65 and older.

Similarly, COVID-19 vaccine uptake was 4.7 percentage points higher this season (17.9%) than in the 2023-24 season (13.2%) and 13.7 percentage points higher (38.5% versus 24.8%) in those aged 65 and older.

RSV vaccine coverage rose from the end of June 2024, when ACIP first recommended that older adults receive a single-dose RSV vaccine, to November 9. Among adults aged 75 years and older, uptake climbed 9.6 percentage points (from 30.1% to 39.7%) and among those aged 60 to 74 years, increased 8.7 percentage points (from 22.9% to 31.6%).

"Health care providers and immunization programs still have time to expand outreach activities and promote vaccination to increase coverage in preparation for the height of the respiratory virus season," the study authors wrote. "Using these data can help health care providers and immunization programs identify undervaccinated populations and understand vaccination patterns to guide planning, implementation, and evaluation of vaccination activities."

Very low COVID vaccine uptake in nursing homes For the second study, CDC researchers and their colleagues used the same survey to evaluate vaccine uptake in nursing home residents.

As of November 10, 29.7% of nursing home residents had received an updated COVID-19 vaccine dose. Of those living at nursing homes that opted to report vaccinations against flu (59.4%) and RSV (51.8%), 58.4% had received a flu vaccine dose, and 17.9% were vaccinated against RSV.

COVID-19 vaccine coverage ranged from 19.8% in Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas to 38.6% in Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming. COVID-19 vaccine uptake was highest in the least socially vulnerable counties (33.6%) and in small facilities (34.7%) and lowest in large facilities (28.0%). Flu vaccine uptake ranged from 50.9% in Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington state to 64.1% in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. Flu vaccine coverage was highest in the least socially vulnerable counties (60.8%) and in small facilities (62.9%) and was lowest in large facilities (56.7%).

RSV vaccine coverage ranged from 9.3% in Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas to 29.2% in Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming. RSV vaccine uptake was highest in the least socially vulnerable counties (21.3%) and in small facilities (24.1%) and lowest in the most socially vulnerable counties (15.3%) and large facilities (15.9%).

In comparison, by November 12, 2023, 24.0% of nursing home residents had received a COVID-19 vaccine, 68.3% had been vaccinated against flu, and 6.7% had received an RSV vaccine dose.

"During both the 2023–24 respiratory virus season and the 2024–25 season to date, coverage with all three vaccines was highest in small nursing homes and in nursing homes in North Dakota and South Dakota, suggesting that staff members in small facilities might be better able to build trust with residents and families and mitigate barriers to vaccination and that efforts by states to develop strong relationships among stakeholders are effective," the researchers wrote.

"Although CDC and other federal agencies have programs in place to address both the financial and vaccine hesitancy–related barriers to vaccination in nursing homes, more needs to be done at every level to protect nursing home residents, who constitute one of the population groups at highest risk for severe respiratory disease," they concluded.

Study Links: www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/73/wr/mm7346a1.htm www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/73/wr/mm7346a2.htm

[jonostroveart]

VAX FACTS

“Health Secretary RFK Jr. removed all the members of a key committee that recommends vaccines, and when and how often adults and children should get them…The panel, known as the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, makes recommendations to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention director about which vaccines children and adults should get. Current members include infectious-disease doctors, pediatricians and epidemiologists.” Wall St. Journal, 6-9-25

P.S. I COULD HAVE PREDICTED THAT THE ANTI-VAX WACK JOBS WOULD COME OUT ON THIS ONE! THEY’RE MORE RABID THAN YOUR TYPICAL MAGA DEFENDING DEAR LEADER.

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

Jesse Duquette, The Daily Don

* * * *

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

February 27, 2025

Heather Cox Richardson

Feb 28, 2025

Yesterday an unvaccinated child in Texas died of measles as nearly 140 people in Texas and New Mexico have been reported ill with the disease. This is the country’s first measles death since 2015.

Measles cases appear almost every year, but usually the government works to suppress measles, as well as other contagious diseases. It’s not clear the Trump administration intends to do that. Yesterday the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) abruptly canceled a scheduled meeting to select the strains of flu to be included in next season’s vaccines. This year’s flu season has been severe: according to NBC News health and medical reporter Berkeley Lovelace Jr., 86 children and 19,000 adults so far have died from the flu this year and 430,000 adults have been hospitalized. On February 20, Lovelace reported that a meeting of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, scheduled for February 26–28, was cancelled.

Speaking earlier this month in favor of confirming anti-vaccine activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as secretary of health and human services, Senator Bill Cassidy (R-LA), who chairs the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions and who is a doctor himself, assured his colleagues that Kennedy had promised to notify the Senate before making changes to vaccine programs and that “[i]f confirmed, he will maintain the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices without change.”

Cuts from the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) have made it hard for the country to confront the bird flu that is sweeping the poultry industry and now infecting dairy herds, as well. Marcia Brown of Politico reported today that the Trump administration is trying to rehire government employees who were working on combating the disease after widespread cuts to employees in the Agriculture Department during the first purge of government workers gutted research on it. Now some of the employees in the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, the National Animal Health Laboratory Network program, and so on, have been offered their jobs back, but those offers are haphazard, and not all employees are keen to take jobs that are clearly not secure.

Indeed, health does not seem to be a top priority of the administration. Apoorva Mandavilli of the New York Times noted today that during his remarks at the Cabinet meeting yesterday, billionaire Elon Musk, who the administration has claimed in court is only an advisor to the president and neither leads nor is employed by DOGE, admitted that DOGE had made some initial mistakes, such as when it “accidentally canceled very briefly” efforts to contain an outbreak of Ebola in Uganda. But Musk reassured his audience that mistaken decisions were quickly reversed. DOGE “restored the Ebola prevention immediately, and there was no interruption.” Except they didn’t: in theory, USAID workers could get a waiver to continue work, but in reality, money did not resume and much of the work was forced to stop.

The administration continues to insist it is cutting “waste, fraud, and abuse,” but the reality that it is cutting programs on which Americans depend is becoming clearer. During yesterday’s Cabinet meeting, Trump indicated that the next major round of workforce cuts will be at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), created by Congress in 1970 at the urging of Republican president Richard M. Nixon to protect clean air, land, and water. Trump said that 65% of the 15,000 people who work there will be fired; an official later clarified that the president meant that the budget would be cut by 65%.

Today, three former heads of the EPA warned in a New York Times op-ed that Americans would miss the agency “when it’s gone.” William K. Reilly and Christine Todd Whitman, who headed the EPA under Republican presidents, and Gina McCarthy, who headed it under a Democratic president, recalled how between 1970 and 2019 the EPA “cut emissions of common air pollutants by 77 percent, while private sector jobs grew 223 percent and our gross domestic product grew almost 300 percent.” The EPA minimizes exposure to dangerous air during wildfires, cleans up contaminated lands, and tests for asbestos, lead, and copper in water,, delivering health benefits that outweigh its costs, the authors say, by more than 30 to 1.

Trump administration officials claim they are enacting the policies their voters demand, but Melanie Zanona, Jonathan Allen, and Matt Dixon of NBC News reported Tuesday that the blowback on Republican representatives willing to hold town halls during the House recess was so intense that House leaders are urging them simply to stop holding constituent events. If they want to continue to do so, leaders suggest making sure they vet attendees to make sure there won’t be altercations that go viral on social media, as several have done recently. Leadership wants to stop what they say is a developing narrative that paints Republicans in a bad light.

Republican National Committee senior advisor Danielle Alvarez told the NBC News reporters: “The president's policies are incredibly popular, and the American people applaud his success in cutting the waste, fraud and abuse of their hard-earned taxpayer dollars…. Pathetic astroturf campaigns organized by out-of-touch, far-left groups are exactly why Democrats will keep losing.”

But today’s news is unlikely to quiet the blowback. The administration announced cuts of 800 workers at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which monitors ocean currents, atmospheric changes, and climate change and provides weather and ocean reports. It suggested further cuts tomorrow could bring the total to 1,000. NOAA’s weather reports and marine forecasts are vital to Americans. As climate scientist David Ho pointed out, for example, NOAA operates both of the U.S. tsunami warning centers. Employees from them were fired today.

Also in DOGE’s crosshairs is Social Security. Today the administration announced a major “organizational restructuring” of the Social Security Administration. This restructuring appears to mean large cuts to the agency, even though staffing is already at a 50-year low. It is not clear exactly how many positions will be cut; multiple outlets say half of the agency’s 57,000 employees will be let go, while an executive at the agency told Erich Wagner and Natalie Alms of Government Executive that the initial number of firings will be 7,000. At least five of the eight regional commissioners whose offices oversee and support the agency’s frontline offices across the country are leaving, and former Social Security administrator Martin O’Malley warned: “Social Security is being driven to a total system collapse.”

There are also rumblings of concern among business people about the Trump administration’s approach to the economy. Trump said today that the 25% tariffs on products from Mexico and Canada he paused for a month in early February will take effect on March 4. An additional 10% tariff on goods from China will also go into effect that day. Tariffs are expected to drive up prices, and Bloomberg reported that in this quarter’s earnings calls for 500 of the country’s most valuable businesses, when company managers, investors, and analysts discuss the company’s financial performance, mentions of tariffs reached an all-time high.

Selina Wang of ABC News reported the warning of economists that the mass firings and the Trump tariff threats are having a “chilling” effect on the economy. The tariffs make it hard to plan for future costs, so companies are holding back on investments, while people who lose their jobs or are afraid they’re going to lose their jobs stop spending money. A survey by the Conference Board, a nonpartisan nonprofit that provides insight for business, shows that consumer confidence is dropping dramatically.

When Stanford University announced today that “[g]iven the uncertainty, we need to take prudent steps to limit spending,” adding that “we are implementing a freeze on staff hiring in the university,” Carl Quintanilla of CNBC posted: “‘Here come the multiplier effects.’”

Voters and business people are not the only ones pushing back against Trump’s policies. Rachel Bluth and Melanie Mason of Politico reported today that the country’s 23 Democratic state attorneys general have been working together to stop Trump’s unconstitutional actions. Under the urging of then–attorney general Bob Ferguson of Washington state in February 2024, they began to prepare for cases based on Trump’s campaign statements, taking them seriously as potential policies, and on Project 2025, which they recognized would play a big part in a second Trump administration.

They worked together to figure out the most effective strategies for challenging the administration in court. As Trump issued executive orders at breakneck speed in his first few days in office, they were ready to respond.

Today, U.S. District Judge William Alsup ordered the administration, specifically the Office of Personnel Management, to rescind the mass firing of government workers with probationary status, ruling that the firings were probably illegal. Alsup pointed out that Congress had given personnel decisions to the agencies themselves. “The Office of Personnel Management does not have any authority whatsoever, under any statute in the history of the universe, to hire and fire employees at another agency. They can hire and fire their own employees.”

“Probationary employees are the lifeblood of these agencies,” the judge added. “They come in at the low level and work their way up, and that’s how we renew ourselves and reinvent ourselves.”

Meanwhile, Trump and his team appear to be trying to undermine the rule of law in the United States. Today, Rebecca Crosby and Judd Legum of Popular Information reported that the Securities and Exchange Commission has stopped its prosecution of Justin Sun, a Chinese cryptocurrency entrepreneur who had been charged in March 2023 with securities fraud. After Trump was elected in 2024, Sun bought $30 million worth of Trump’s World Liberty Financial crypto tokens, putting $18 million directly into Trump’s pockets. Since then, he has invested another $45 million in WLF. Altogether, Sun’s investments have netted Trump more than $50 million.

Crosby and Legum note that the SEC also appears to have dropped its case against the crypto trading platform Coinbase after the platform donated $75 million to a political action committee associated with Trump and donated $1 million to Trump’s inauguration.

And, after Trump issued blanket pardons to those convicted of crimes associated with the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, including those who attacked police officers, his administration now appears to have put pressure on Romania to lift a travel ban on social media influencers Andrew and Tristan Tate. The brothers were under investigation in Romania for rape, human trafficking, and money laundering and are under similar allegations in the U.K.

MAGA Republicans attracted followers by claiming they would stand up for law and order. So the arrival in the U.S. of the Tates was not universally popular among them. A number of MAGA Republicans rushed to distance themselves from the Tates. When news broke that they were headed for Florida, Florida’s attorney general said that Florida has “zero tolerance for human trafficking and violence against women,” and Florida governor Ron DeSantis appeared angry as he said he learned of the Tate brothers’ arrival through the media.

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

[follow-up-news]

Secretary of Health Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is removing all 17 members of a key advisory committee that helps craft vaccine policy and recommendations for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Kennedy made the announcement on Monday afternoon in a press release from the Department of Health and Human Services and an opinion piece published by The Wall Street Journal. In his role as head of HHS, Kennedy has the legal authority to replace members of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), but the decision to scrap the entire committee flies in the face of precedent and has alarmed the public health and medical establishment.

[brightlotusmoon]

From the newsletter by Senator Alsobrooks

_

Dear friends and neighbors,

I’m sure you saw the breathtaking encounter that occurred yesterday between federal officials and my colleague Senator Alex Padilla. Senator Padilla – who had been escorted to the press briefing by federal agents – was manhandled, forced out of a room, taken to the ground, and handcuffed by agents in a federal building yesterday. All for asking a question on behalf of the citizens who elected him.

This is not the America that we know and love. There are some who are saying they don't recognize this America. And I want to ring the bell today for everyone right now: We have now crossed a line. Yesterday was a dangerous day in the history of our country.

In Donald Trump's America, asking a question and pushing back caused him to be manhandled for the whole world to see. Manhandled. Treated like a person who had come off the streets. The thuggish behavior that I saw is absolutely unacceptable.

A peaceful man – who is not only a senator, but, a father, a husband, a person, a venerable part of our society – was there on behalf of the people who have elected him – was treated violently. He had his hands in the air, and apparently that wasn’t enough.

If this attack on a U.S. Senator doesn’t make you shudder, then I have no words. Because yesterday it was Senator Padilla. Tomorrow it could be any person who disagrees with this Administration – whether a federal official elected by the people of this great nation, or an educator who voices their concern with the future of our children’s education. This is NOT what democracy looks like. This is anything but a democracy.

The right to free speech is sacred in our country. And if we as a country continue along this road — we will account for it.

The people who perpetrated these violent acts must be held accountable, and the American people cannot and will not be silenced.

You can watch my remarks on the senate floor here.

Sick of It

Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. continues to make dangerous decisions when it comes to leading the premier medical research agencies in the world. He’s making decisions that are not in the best interest of the American people, and he’s quite literally making us sicker. Let’s look at the facts:

$15 million in cuts to cancer research grants

$9.5 billion in NIH grants terminated

20,000 jobs eliminated

And just this week, we see that RFK Jr. won’t even honor his promises to my colleagues on the other side of the aisle. After saying he would not change the CDC Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices, he fired all 17 members. And who did he replace them with? Anti-vax conspiracy theorists who will undoubtedly rubber stamp his anti-vax agenda.

I have already called for RFK Jr. to resign or be fired. I took a resolution to the floor for unanimous consent last month and Republicans blocked it. I hope they too can see the danger that lies ahead if we don’t act now. Click here to see my conversation with Lawrence O’Donnell on Tuesday night.

Fighting for Your Health Care

I am proud to share that I introduced the Medicare and Medicaid Dental, Vision and Hearing Benefit Act. The introduction of my legislation was part of an effort by more than a dozen of my Democratic colleagues in the Senate to strengthen and invest in Medicaid – especially at a time when our colleagues on the other side of the aisle are trying to slash it.

Specifically, the bill would:

- Amend the Social Security Act to include Medicare coverage for routine cleanings, exams, fillings, crowns, root canals, extractions, emergency care, hearing aids, eye exams, and more, phased in gradually to 80% coverage.

- Encourage states to provide their optional dental, hearing, and vision services to people with Medicaid by increasing the associated Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (FMAP) rate to 90 percent.

This legislation is very personal to me and to our state. 18 years ago, a young Marylander named Deamonte Driver died of complications from a tooth infection because his family was kicked off Medicaid and could not afford the care they needed. He was only 12 years old. Senator Cardin worked tirelessly throughout his career to make sure that no child should ever suffer Deamonte’s fate.

Every child, every family, deserves access to quality, affordable dental care. Access is literally a matter of life and death. This bill builds upon Senator Cardin’s work and continues to expand and strengthen Medicaid dental, hearing, and vision coverage. While this Administration and its supporters in Congress are determined to kick as many people off their health insurance as possible, we will fight tooth and nail to expand coverage and to ensure that every American, every child in particular, has access to the care they need.

You can read more in a Baltimore Sun article here.

Fighting for First Responders

As you may know, we lost two Baltimore City firefighters in recent weeks and it’s clear that more needs to be done to ensure our firefighters have the resources they need to stay safe and combat mental health challenges that come from the trauma of their jobs.

During a confirmation hearing this week, I demanded answers from OSHA Nominee David Keeling and pushed for a commitment to quickly finalize the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Emergency Response Standard.

OSHA is proposing an update to workplace protections for firefighters and other emergency service personnel, which has not been updated for nearly 50 years. The standard calls for increased safety standards in emergency response, including staffing, training, apparatus readiness, and protective clothing and equipment. Additionally, it will require employers to obtain baseline medical screenings for all emergency responders and requires access to behavioral health resources.

At the same time, this Administration has taken actions that together make firefighters and emergency responders less safe.

RFK Jr. cut staff from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, or NIOSH, the health agency responsible for overseeing workplace safety.

Those staffing cuts forced the National Firefighter Cancer Registry to go offline, leaving firefighters who suffer from toxic exposure and heightened cancer risks in the lurch.

The Administration abruptly paused training at the National Fire Academy in Emmitsburg, Maryland earlier this year, saying that the government would not pay for travel for programs it did not deem mission critical.

Watch part of my questioning for OSHA Nominee David Keeling here.

Fighting Through Legislation

I continue to work hard to fight for Marylanders. From fighting for the safety of our first responders to fighting to ensure each of us has access to the health care we need, I wanted to share some of the legislation I cosponsored over the last week.

Expanded Coverage for Former Foster Youth Act

This bill aims to ensure continuity of health insurance for youth who have left foster care. It extends Medicaid coverage for eligible youth until the age of 26, regardless of their previous Medicaid enrollment status or if they were in a different state's foster care system. The Act also mandates that states establish outreach and enrollment programs to help these youth access their Medicaid benefits.

Easy Enrollment in Health Care Act

This bill would simplify the process of enrolling in a health insurance plan by enabling Americans to receive health care plan information and enroll in coverage through their federal income tax returns.

Stabilize Medicaid and CHIP Coverage Act

This bill would provide 12 months of continuous coverage for all individuals receiving health care through Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), so that they do not risk losing coverage during that period of time.

Helping Tobacco Users Quit Act

This bill would extend comprehensive tobacco cessation coverage to all Medicaid and CHIP beneficiaries, as well as eliminate cost sharing and prior authorization requirements.

Protect IVF Act

This bill seeks to establish a federal statutory right for individuals to access, providers to offer, and insurers to cover fertility treatments, particularly in vitro fertilization (IVF), without interference from state-level restrictions that are not grounded in evidence-based medical standards.

My Body, My Data Act

This bill seeks to establish a national privacy standard to safeguard personal reproductive and sexual health data. Specifically, it limits the collection and use of such data to what is strictly necessary for delivering a requested product or service, helping to prevent its misuse, sale, or exposure, particularly by non-HIPAA-covered entities like apps, websites, and tech platforms.

Child Care for Working Families Act

This bill would tackle the child care crisis head-on: ensuring families can afford the child care they need, expanding access to more high-quality options, stabilizing the child care sector, helping ensure child care workers taking care of our nation’s kids are paid livable wages. The legislation will also dramatically expand access to pre-K, and support full-day, full-year Head Start programs and increased wages for Head Start workers.

Advancing Student Services in Schools Today (ASSIST) Act

This legislation establishes a new grant program at Health and Human Services (HHS) to hire and retain mental health and substance use disorder providers in schools and school-based health centers, with a 90% federal funding match. It complements and expands Medicaid support for in-school behavioral health services.

World War II Women’s Memorial Location Act

This bipartisan bill would authorize the placement of a memorial to the women who served in WWII in the vicinity of the WWII memorial on the National Mall.

In the Community

I joined the National Association of Women Business Owners for their 50th Anniversary Advocacy Luncheon. Creating economic opportunity is my north star. I'm pursuing policies that expand access to capital so businesses – like the ones run by the women in this room – can grow.

It was Field Day at Tulip Grove Elementary in Prince George’s County! I had so much fun with the students before they are off to enjoy the summer. I will keep on fighting for our public schools and ensuring all Maryland students have access to quality education.

Local food is medicine. Spice Creek Farm does incredible work delivering local produce to our communities. While farmers are suffering under this Administration – the threat of tariffs, cuts to USDA, and rising prices – I will keep fighting for our farmers and bring down costs.

Grateful to Luminis Health, Employ Prince George’s, and all our partners for co-hosting a job and resource fair for Marylanders who have been impacted by layoffs and those seeking new opportunities. We had employers from across Maryland join us at First Baptist Church of Highland Park. During this time, it’s critical that we come together as a community to support one another.

I visited Marylanders at Collington senior community. Nearly every one of them told me how this Republican scam of a bill would hurt them. Kicking Marylanders off their health care is utterly callous. I'll always fight to protect Medicare and Medicaid.

I was honored to speak at Duke University’s Executive Master of Public Affairs reception. My time at Duke ignited a passion for service and love of public policy. And it was at Duke where I started to hear the call to serve. I hope the students I spoke with hear that call too.

Proud to join Goldman Sachs One Million Black Women roundtable to discuss securing access to capital and finding more ways for women-owned businesses to succeed. Small businesses make us stronger. And I’ll work with anyone who wants to clear the way so businesses can prosper.

It was a joy to join Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. – Alpha Leadership Academy. This program equips collegiate young men to lead with purpose, integrity, and service. I encouraged them to have a voice in national affairs. They made me hopeful for our future.

Our constituent services team stands ready to assist you!

If you are a veteran who needs help navigating the Department of Veterans Affairs, if you’re having trouble navigating Social Security, the IRS or immigration, please reach out to our team by filling out the applicable form here.

I know these are difficult times. But please know that I will continue fighting for you every step of the way. We will not give up. We will not give in to this Administration, and I ask that you continue to fight alongside us. Please continue to reach out to us. You can call the office, connect with us, or find resources for those who have been laid off at alsobrooks.senate.gov.

You can also follow us on Bluesky, Instagram, Facebook, Threads, YouTube, and X. We are in this TOGETHER.

Sincerely,

Angela D. Alsobrooks

United States Senator

[mariacallous]

If the policies of Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. aren’t reversed, “a lot of Americans are going to die as a result of vaccine-preventable diseases.”

Unfortunately, that quote is not attributable to Chicken Little. Instead, it’s the opinion of Dr. Fiona Havers, formerly a top scientist at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, who resigned from the agency Monday.

In her first interview after leaving, Havers told the New York Times that Kennedy’s attacks on science and how science is conducted will have dire consequences.

“It’s a very transparent, rigorous process, and they have just taken a sledgehammer to it in the last several weeks,” she said. “CDC processes are being corrupted in a way that I haven’t seen before.”

At the CDC, Havers oversaw the team that collects data on COVID-19 and RSV hospitalizations and helped craft national vaccine policy.

In a goodbye email to her colleagues that was seen by Reuters, Havers said she no longer had confidence that her team’s output would “be used objectively or evaluated with appropriate scientific rigor to make evidence-based vaccine policy decisions.”

Kennedy’s attacks on vaccination, coupled with the shocking firing of all 17 members of the Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices earlier this month, helped persuade her to go.

The health secretary has since named eight replacements to the influential panel. Among them are a scientist who criticized COVID-19 vaccines, a critic of pandemic-era lockdowns and another person the Associated Press described as “widely considered to be a leading source of vaccine misinformation.”

“I could not be party to legitimizing this new committee,” Havers told the Times.

“I have utmost respect for my colleagues at CDC who stay and continue to try and limit the damage from the inside,” she added. “What happened last week was the last straw for me.”

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Robyn Pennacchia at Wonkette:

This weekend, Fox News published an op-ed from Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in which the longtime anti-vaxxer and current secretary of the United States Department of Health and Human Services appeared to take a more nuanced view of the MMR vaccine in light of the recent measles outbreak in Texas that recently led to the death of an unvaccinated school-aged child. “All parents should consult with their healthcare providers to understand their options to get the MMR vaccine. The decision to vaccinate is a personal one. Vaccines not only protect individual children from measles, but also contribute to community immunity, protecting those who are unable to be vaccinated due to medical reasons,” he wrote, which was not great, but a slight improvement over “VaCcIneS cAuSE AutIsM!” But given the seriousness of the outbreak — and the fact that some families are even responding to it by holding measles parties — it’s not enough. Especially since Kennedy also stated that “Good nutrition remains a best defense against most chronic and infectious illnesses. Vitamins A, C, and D, and foods rich in vitamins B12, C, and E should be part of a balanced diet.”

And you know what? Elizabeth Warren was not impressed. The op-ed inspired the senator to write RFK Jr. a letter in which she accused him of already not living up to the promises he made in his confirmation hearing to “maintain the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices [(ACIP)] without changes” and to “base vaccine recommendations on data-driven, evidence-based, and medically sound research.” Specifically, Warren pointed out that he has “already begun planning to replace members of ACIP” and postponed their first scheduled meeting with him; that he “cancelled the next meeting of the Vaccine and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee (VRBPAC)” at which they were meant to discuss what strains of the flu should be included in next year’s flu vaccine; and that he had already announced that the HHS is considering pulling funding for a bird flu vaccine.

Elizabeth Warren smoked RFK Jr. good.

[subdee]

But who's making vaccine policy? Well, the CDC - which is the nation's most trusted federal agency - convenes the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices. This is made up of a dozen or so medical, public health, and immunization experts - mostly from outside of government. People are nominated by their peers, or apply. They're not political appointees; there are rigorous criteria for even being considered.

The ACIP carefully reviews science and implementation practice in order to develop recommendations. They work in the open - their policies and procedures are all published online, they review science and cite their sources, and they make clear, evidence-based recommendations. These recommendations are accepted by the vast majority of health care providers.

In short, it's not "the government." It's not stuff that gets argued about on cable news, or stuff that gets lawn signs made about it, or social media disinformation campaigns.

It's more or less the gold standard for how policy should be made.

And frankly - when it comes to public health - yeah, that's your government. That's your deep state. Your civil service - your often unionized workforce. People doing careful science out of a deep and abiding commitment to health, wellbeing, and collectivity. People who want policy to be guided by evidence - people who are committed to outcomes, not ideology. People who will never hear "thank you for your service" but are here for you anyway.

This is the advisory panel that RFK, Jr just fired all 17 members of so he can get a "clean slate" on vaccination advice to the public (aka, pull proven effective vaccines until the CDC can "review" them and then never fund the review).

There's an open comment period until June 20th, 2025, on regulations.gov so US residents go ahead and let these bozos know what we think of their attempt to let large numbers of us die from preventable diseases out of some misguided Christian notion that if we live a virtuous lifestyle we'll be rewarded with good health.

[saywhat-politics]

Trump’s First Surgeon General: RFK Jr. Purging the CDC Advisory Committee Will Put Lives at Risk

by

Dr. Jerome Adams

Adams was the 20th U.S. Surgeon General from 2017-2021. He is a distinguished professor and the executive director of the Center for Health Enhancement and Learning at Purdue University.

When Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. began his tenure as Health and Human Services Secretary, he pledged, “We won’t take away anyone’s vaccines.” However, recent policy changes under his leadership—coupled with the unprecedented dismissal of all 17 members of the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) on June 9—have proven that statement false, raising grave concerns for our nation’s COVID-19 response and broader vaccine policies. These shifts not only jeopardize public health but also threaten to erode trust in our health institutions at a critical time.

[darkmaga-returns]

On Wednesday, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced a new Centers for Disease Control advisory committee on vaccination, tasked with investigating claims of a depopulation agenda. This move follows his decision to dismiss all 17 members of the previous Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), signaling a bold overhaul of vaccine policy.

Kennedy justified the sweeping changes by citing “decades” of “conflicts of interest” and “skewed science” within the vaccine regulatory system. In a Wall Street Journal op-ed, he accused the former committee of acting as a “rubber stamp” for industry interests, undermining public trust. The new panel, reduced to eight members, includes controversial figures with vaccine-skeptic views, raising concerns among public health experts about the direction of U.S. immunization policy.

[astromechs]

i know we're all rightfully focused on los angeles right now, but don't let this slip through the cracks either:

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced on Monday he is removing all 17 sitting members of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's vaccine advisory committee and replacing them with new members. The Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices (ACIP) makes recommendations on the safety, efficacy and clinical need of vaccines. "Today we are prioritizing the restoration of public trust above any specific pro- or anti-vaccine agenda," Kennedy said in a statement. "The public must know that unbiased science -- evaluated through a transparent process and insulated from conflicts of interest -- guides the recommendations of our health agencies." In a press release, HHS said the Biden administration appointed all 17 sitting ACIP members, with 13 of those appointments occurring in 2024.

story here