Nine new members appointed to America’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) have financial ties to Big Pharma, or have publicly promoted vaccines.
ACIP is said to be an autonomous group of experts not affiliated with the federal government.
Children’s Health Defense reported on Wednesday massive conflict of interest concerns for the new appointees who will be advising the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on vaccine recommendations.
The report points out that most of the appointees have received grant funding or consulting fees from major pharmaceutical companies like Pfizer, Moderna, and Merck:
- Dr. Denise Jamieson: Known for promoting COVID vaccines for pregnant women and receiving funding from the CDC for COVID-19 vaccination promotion.
- Dr. Yvonne Maldonado: Received research funding from Pfizer and advocated for testing COVID vaccines in children.
- Dr. Robert Schechter: Serves as a public advocate on various HHS committees and has a background with the California Department of Public Health.
- Dr. Albert Shaw: Advocated for COVID-19 vaccination and has ties to pharmaceutical companies.
- Dr. Edwin Asturias: A global vaccine researcher with consulting fees from major pharmaceutical companies like Merck.
- Dr. Noel Brewer: Known for developing the “Announcement Approach” to HPV vaccination and consulting for Merck.
- Dr. Helen Chu: Has ties to pharmaceutical companies, Gates ventures, and advocates for the RSV vaccine.
The cozy relationship between Big Pharma and vaccine safety advisors isn’t anything new, of course. In December 2022, a member from Pfizer’s Independent Data Safety Monitoring Board admitted in court that she was also on the pharmaceutical company’s payroll.
FDA removes informed consent for “minimal risk”
Last month, the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) removed the requirement to get informed consent from human participants for what they call “minimal risk” studies.
The FDA claimed the policy change will provide cost savings and healthcare advances.
