The decision to limit thimerosal in vaccines may have an effect on the global supply of vaccines in the future.
The new RFK Jr. vaccine panel is criticized by US pediatricians as "truly an embarrassment."
A crucial federal vaccination panel has advised against using a certain preservative in seasonal influenza vaccines. This recommendation is expected to shock the medical and scientific community worldwide and may have an effect on vaccine availability in the future.
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a vaccine skeptic who has advocated against the use of thimerosal despite a lack of proof of harm in the real world, unilaterally recreated the panel.
Members supported limiting thimerosal in seasonal influenza vaccines for all age groups in three votes: five supported the limitation, one abstained, and one against it.
The only "no" vote was cast by panelist Dr. Cody Meissner, a pediatrics professor at Dartmouth's Geisel School of Medicine, who stated, "The risk from influenza is so much greater than the nonexistent – as far as we know – risk from thimerosal."
"I find it very difficult to justify denying someone the influenza vaccine because the only preparation that is currently available contains thimerosal." Formally known as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices (ACIP), the panel plays a crucial role in the vaccine distribution process by advising physicians and health insurers on which vaccines to recommend to patients.
In June, Kennedy dismissed all 17 of the panel's previous members due to conflicts of interest and added eight new members who share the secretary's views.
As of Thursday morning, none of the new members had been added to a conflict of interest tracker created for ACIP members by the Trump administration or published formal conflict of interest disclosures.
According to Dr. Sean O'Leary, chair of the American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Infectious Diseases, "there is a very big difference between what was shared at the meeting versus what is reality." "The rhetoric being used to suggest otherwise is harmful and misleading, as the science on thimerosal is settled."
Instead of voting on a previously proposed agenda that contained seasonal recommendations for Covid-19 and the HPV vaccination, ACIP added the contentious topic of thimerosal in vaccines. The panel upheld the recommendation that Americans older than six months should get the influenza vaccination.
For decades, anti-vaccine activists have used the preservative as a talking point, despite several studies showing no harm in the real world. Several medical association representatives pushed the panel to reject the anti-thimerosal recommendation during the conference.
About 5% of multidose seasonal influenza vials include thimerosal, which is known to be more economical than single-dose formulations. Before the next flu season, it is unknown how the vote would affect the availability of flu vaccines, especially for clinics that depend on these formulations.
Since before World War II, vaccines have contained thimerosal as a preservative. As a precaution, thimerosal was eliminated from the majority of adult and all routine pediatric vaccines in the early 2000s. Experts noted that this decision transmitted conflicting messages about a preservative that had not been shown to be harmful. Since then, conventional medicine has regarded the matter as resolved.
Thimerosal is a preservative based on ethylmercury. Ethylmercury is not the same as methylmercury, which is the type of mercury present in seafood. Compared to methylmercury, which has a half-life of roughly 44–58 days and builds up in the brain, ethylmercury has a much shorter half-life in the blood and brain, about seven days and thirty days, respectively. A 3-ounce portion of canned tuna fish has 40 micrograms of ethylmercury, which is roughly half of the 25 micrograms found in a flu vaccine.
There is no correlation between thimerosal and neurological consequences, according to numerous, extensive research carried out in various nations. Before the panel met again on Thursday, a presentation by CDC career scientists that was originally scheduled to go over some of this significant material was taken out.
When asked about the slapped-down presentation, prominent anti-vaccine campaigner Dr. Robert Malone, a member of ACIP, responded, "That article was not authorized by the office of the secretary and was removed."
Lyn Redwood, a nurse practitioner who started the World Mercury Project—the forerunner of Kennedy's anti-vaccine lobbying group Children's Health Defense—presented to the panel instead. Her presentation was discovered to contain a reference to an apparently fictitious study prior to the meeting.
"There are many issues we could discuss, and this is an old issue that has been addressed in the past," Meissner stated.
"It's inappropriate to dismiss a presentation just because the person does not have a PhD or MD," stated ACIP head Dr. Martin Kulldorff, a former Harvard professor who was sacked for refusing the Covid-19 vaccination, in response to criticism of Redwood's presentation.
Since thimerosal is used as a preservative in less expensive multidose vials for vaccinations used worldwide, the ACIP decision may have global repercussions.
"I am aware that the ACIP is primarily focused on the United States, but many nations worldwide follow the recommendations that the ACIP makes," Meissner remarked.
"For instance, removing thimerosal from all vaccines used in other nations will decrease access to these vaccines, raise costs, and I believe it's crucial to remember that no study has ever shown any harm from thimerosal."
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