We’ve taken a giant step backwards,” remarked Dr. Paul Offit, a leading vaccine scientist, after the abrupt dismissal of the entire CDC Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F.

The demonstration came a day after Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. gutted a federal vaccine safety panel and vowed to replace all the members.

U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s dismissal of an independent panel of experts citing the goal of restoring trust in vaccines could undermine confidence in those available now, putting Americans at risk of preventable infectious diseases,

Laid off workers were told their notices of an upcoming reduction in force were "revoked." Officials didn't explain why HHS appeared to be restoring hundreds of jobs it previously called duplicative.

The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices helps the agency make recommendations on who should get certain vaccines.

There was a notable absence last week when U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced in a 58-second video that the government would no longer endorse the COVID-19 vaccine for healthy children or pregnant women.

"We're turning back the clock in a very dangerous way," said Paul Allwood, whose team at the CDC was eliminated in April.