Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices February Meeting Postponed

The latest meeting of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) has been postponed indefinitely to allow time for public comments to be collected, according to federal health officials, Reuters has reported.

ACIP usually holds multiple meetings each year to review scientific data and make recommendations to the director of the CDC. This particular meeting, originally scheduled for Feb. 26 to 28, was to include several important votes, including one about how a key government vaccine distribution program should handle influenza inoculations. The draft agenda also indicated reviews of the GSK meningococcal vaccine and AstraZeneca flu shot.

According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the public is normally allowed time to submit written comments in advance of ACIP meetings through a federal portal. Prior to the inauguration of President Trump last month, the CDC had posted a formal notice of the February ACIP meeting, noting that comments could be submitted between Feb. 3 and 17. However, a letter to the newly appointed Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., signed by more than 50 medical experts and organizations, states that the portal has been “absent,” Reuters reported. The signatories also requested the “critical” meeting be rescheduled.

The American College of Physicians echoed that sentiment. “Our country is currently facing the worst epidemic of influenza in several decades, a measles outbreak in Texas, and an ongoing national outbreak of pertussis,” Isaac O. Opole, M.B.Ch.B., Ph.D., president of the American College of Physicians, said in a statement. “The CDC must promptly reschedule this critical meeting. We call on Secretary Kennedy and other officials to ensure that the advice of epidemiologists, researchers, physicians, and other experts in disease and immunizations remains primary in helping to ensure the public’s health.”

Reuters Article

Source: HealthDay