Newsroom | Defend Public Health

California confirms first measles case for 2026 in San Mateo County as vaccination debates continue

As California confirms its first measles case of 2026, DPH Coordinating Committee member James Alwine warns, “Viruses and bacteria that were under control are being set free on our most vulnerable.”

The 6 biggest changes in the new dietary guidelines

This overview of the new federal diet guidelines addresses several controversial aspects, quoting DPH Coordinating Committee member Elizabeth Jacobs: “The implications that butter and beef tallow are ‘healthy fats’ don’t have scientific support and are simply figments of RFK Jr.’s imagination.”

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Approach RFK Jr.’s New Diet Guidelines Skeptically, Defend Public Health Says

The federal government’s new diet guidelines, released after months of unfounded political criticisms of earlier versions from Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, must be approached with caution and a degree of skepticism, health experts with Defend Public Health said today.

RFK Jr's Whopper of the Week

Whopper of the Week: RFK, Jr. Cloaks Anti-vaxx Quackery in the Language of Informed Consent

On January 5, 2026, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced that the CDC will no longer recommend six of the seventeen vaccines previously on the United States (U.S.) childhood immunization schedule, claiming it was to promote "informed consent." This change doesn't change the informed consent process between the healthcare provider and the patient. But it does complicate who can give a vaccine, how physicians present information, and which individual circumstances should be considered relevant in decision-making.

Changes to the Childhood Vaccine Schedule

On this New York City public radio show, Jessica Malaty Rivera, infectious disease epidemiologist and member of Defend Public Health, explains the changes to the CDC vaccine recommendations, why they are such a big deal for public health, and the misleading statements and assumptions that underlie them.

Huffpost

With Flu Rates Soaring, Why Did RFK’s CDC Stop Recommending The Vaccine For Kids?

The criticism of the RFK Jr.-controlled CDC's decision to cut back vaccine recommendations continues to mount, with DPH Coordinating Committee member Elizabeth Jacobs telling HuffPost, “There is no scientific evidence supporting the change in recommendations, and therefore, Mr. Kennedy was unable to provide any.”

Trump and RFK Jr are dismantling public health—aided and abetted by powerful doctors

In one of the world's top medical journals, DPH Coordinating Committee member Jon Shaffer and a colleague discuss the high-profile physicians aiding and abetting Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s destruction of U.S. public health and the need for clinicians, public health workers and citizens to fight back.

6 shots removed from US childhood vaccine recommendations

In this article about the administration's removal of vaccines from the childhood schedule, epidemiologist and DPH Coordinating Committee member Elizabeth Jacobs comments, “It’s simply going to cause more confusion and chaos among parents who really aren’t sure what this means, and because there is so little justification for it, that just adds to the confusion.”

Under anti-vaccine RFK Jr., CDC slashes childhood vaccine schedule

In an article that pulls no punches about the many differences between U.S. healthcare and Denmark's, Ars Technica quotes DPH Coordinating Committee member James Alwine alongside a variety of expert critics or RFK Jr.'s sharp reduction in the number of recommended vaccines, including the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Medical Association.

Trump administration slashes number of diseases U.S. children will be regularly vaccinated against

The LA Times reports on the Trump Administration's decision to remove Hepatitis A and B, rotavirus, RSV, bacterial meningitis and influenza from the pediatric vaccine schedule. Experts including Defend Public Health Coordinating Committee Member Dr. James Alwine talk about the potential for these changes to increase the spread of communicable diseases.

Medpage today

RFK Jr. Slashes Number of Recommended Vaccines

Health and medical organizations denounce the RFK Jr.-inspired decision to cut the number of recommended vaccines, quoting Coordinating Committee member and virologist James Alwine from DPH's statement.

US to slash routine vaccine recommendations for children in major change experts say creates doubt

In coverage of the CDC's decision to pare back childhood vaccine recommendations, DPH Coordinating Committee member James Alwine comments, “Viruses and bacteria that were under control are being set free on our most vulnerable. It may take one or two years for the tragic consequences to become clear, but this is like asking farmers in North Dakota to grow pineapples. It won’t work and can’t end well.”