Richard Payerchin

Without stable, science-driven leadership at the CDC, patient safety and public trust hang in the balance. Infection preventionists must demand accountability and champion evidence-based guidance now.

In its first major session under newly appointed leadership, the revamped Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) voted to support flu and RSV vaccinations for the 2025–2026 season, but internal debate over vaccine preservatives, access equity, and risk assessment highlighted the ideological and scientific tensions now shaping federal vaccine policy.

As the newly appointed Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) met for the first time under sweeping changes by HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr, the national spotlight turned to the panel’s legitimacy, vaccine guidance, and whether science or ideology would steer public health policy in a polarized era.

Health leaders are outraged after HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. abruptly fired all 17 members of the CDC’s vaccine advisory panel, calling it a political purge that threatens public trust and vaccine safety.

HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. faced intense scrutiny over sweeping budget cuts and public health reforms during back-to-back hearings on Capitol Hill this week.

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) increasingly challenges medicine advancements. Limited diagnostics delay treatment, causing higher hospitalizations and mortality. Antibiotic overuse in low-income countries worsens resistance. Pharmaceutical companies must invest in research and global stewardship to mitigate AMR's effects.