June 11, 2025 Washington, DC — Statement from Katie Smith Sloan, president and CEO of LeadingAge, the association of nonprofit providers of aging services, on Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s June 9, 2025 removal of Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices (ACIP) committee members:
“The decision by Secretary Kennedy to remove the ACIP committee members, under the guise of restoring public trust above any specific pro- or anti-vaccine agenda, is deeply concerning. The result of this action, considered in context of the Trump administration’s termination of the Healthcare Infection Control Practices Advisory Committee (HICPAC), severely reduces knowledge sharing and valuable debate needed in the establishment of recommendations regarding both infection prevention and control and immunization practices.
Our hardworking nonprofit and mission-driven members, who serve older adults and families in nursing homes, home health and home care, hospices and other care settings, rely on recommendations and sound guidance developed by experts. Without the specific subject-matter knowledge that members of each committee delivered to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the agency is at a disadvantage, and threats to Americans’ health and well-being increase.
Retreating from evidence-backed decision-making is unwise at a time when we should be moving toward it––particularly after the COVID-19 pandemic and the current specter of measles outbreaks and other public health perils. In addition, the Secretary’s decisions cast doubt on practical operational issues: without ACIP’s recommendations, will Medicare, Medicaid, health systems and insurers cover vaccines? Will older adults no longer have access to vitally important preventive care?
These are not hypothetical issues: lives are at stake. We urge the Secretary to restore confidence in HHS’s infection control and immunization guidelines with the selection of credible, qualified and science-based experts for both committees.”
