Newsroom | Defend Public Health

US vaccine advisers say not all babies need a hepatitis B shot at birth

The biggest news service in the U.S. reports on ACIP's decision to no longer recommend universal Hepatitis B vaccination for infants, noting that "a loud chorus of medical and public health leaders decried the actions of the panel" -- and including DPH Coordinating Committee member Elizabeth Jacobs' description of the meeting as "an epidemiological crime scene."

Why The Hepatitis B Birth Dose Is At Risk From New CDC Vaccine Advisors

Medical writer Dr. Judy Stone chronicles the many strange and unscientific aspects of the Dec. 4 ACIP meeting, quoting a variety of experts, including DPH Coordinating Committee member Elizabeth Jacobs, who termed the meeting "an epidemiological crime scene."

CDC panel debates hepatitis B vaccine for newborns at a contentious meeting

As this article notes, the Dec. 4 ACIP meeting was marked by confusion about what precisely members were supposed to vote on, leading to a vote being postponed. It quotes multiple experts, including DPH Coordinating Committee member Elizabeth Jacobs who notes how hepatitis B is sometimes stigmatized, making the problem worse.

RFK Jr.'s HHS Blasted As CDC Panel Considers Dropping Life-Saving Hepatitis B Vaccine For Newborns

The Dec. 4 meeting of ACIP was widely viewed as an unscientific disaster. This roundup of what happened as well as appalled reactions quotes DPH Coordinating Committee member Elizabeth Jacobs at length. The article states bluntly, "No verifiable medical reason has been provided for any of RFK Jr.'s changes that are now dominating HHS and CDC practices."

defend public health

ACIP Meeting Turns into “Epidemiological Crime Scene”

Health experts with Defend Public Health expressed shock at the flood of antivaxxer disinformation that dominated the first day of the December meeting of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices. Epidemiologist Elizabeth Jacobs, a member of the Defend Public Health Coordinating Committee said, “The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices is no longer a legitimate scientific body. This is an epidemiological crime scene."

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Health Experts Fear Vaccine Advisory Meeting Will Further Damage Nation’s Health

Health experts with Defend Public Health urged the public and medical community to treat anything that comes from this week’s meeting of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) with extreme caution, expressing fears that the committee will pursue Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s unscientific anti-vaccine agenda.

Bloomberg Law

RFK Jr. Furthers Agenda With Pick of Covid-Critical HHS Adviser

Bloomberg Law reports on the appointment of Martin Kulldorff as Chief Science Officer for the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE), with comments from Defending Public Health Coordinating Committee Member Gregg Gonsalves and others on how RFK Jr continues to reshape the American health system by appointing high profile anti-vaccine advocates.

RFK Jr's Whopper of the Week

Whopper of the Week: RFK Wants You to Fortify Your Immune System So He Can Deprive You of Modern Medicine

RFK Jr. believes that with a healthy diet, exercise, and the avoidance of environmental toxins and stresses alone, an individual can prevent disease. While these are good health practices, they are not an excuse for RFK Jr. to deny the known benefits of infectious disease prevention strategies like vaccines, antiseptics, antibiotics, and social distancing . If RFK’s misguided beliefs become policy they will make us sicker and increase rates of acute and chronic diseases and death.

Trump Gutted AIDS Health Care at the Worst Possible Time

This roundup of the massive damage the Trump administration has done to HIV/AIDS care and prevention around the world includes comments from a variety of perspectives, including DPH Coordinating Committee member and longtime AIDS activist Gregg Gonsalves.

Forbes

What Is A “Professional Degree” And Why Does It Matter?

As Congress and the administration move to limit student aid for nurses and other health professionals, Forbes quotes several DPH members, including Nebraskan Russ Francis, APRN, about the likely damage: “This decision devalues the extensive education and critical expertise of the very providers who are the backbone of our healthcare system. The impact will be felt most acutely in rural and underserved areas, where NPs and PAs [nurse practitioners and physician assistants] are often the primary—and sometimes only—access point to high-quality care."

RFK Jr's Whopper of the Week

Whopper of the Week: RFK Jr. Has Plainly Stated His Belief in the Falsehoods of AIDS Denialism

In June 2023, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. told New York Magazine, "There are much better candidates than HIV for what causes AIDS." This is blatantly false, contradicted by mountains of data and real-world experience. Though Kennedy's kept his recent wording more vague, his actions as HHS Secretary suggest that this anti-science nonsense, which has already killed hundreds of thousands, may well be influencing government policy on HIV/AIDS.

RFK Jr.'s CDC Blasted After Updating Website To Include Debunked Theory About Vaccines

This roundup of blistering reactions from the medical and public health community to the CDC's dishonest web page on vaccines and autism features comments posted by DPH Coordinating Committee member Elizabeth Jacobs on Bluesky. Among other things, she calls this RFK Jr.-inspired action "absolutely disgusting."