CIDRAP | The White House
During his confirmation hearing, Kennedy promised senators that he would not alter the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), which makes vaccine recommendations to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), including which vaccines should be available for free to needy children and which ones should be covered without a copay by private insurance. Within a few months of taking office, however, Kennedy, a long-time anti-vaccine activist, fired all 17 members of the committee, replacing them with people who have cast doubt on vaccine safety.