NEW YORK – On Monday, federal representatives revealed that U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has appointed a new leader to his contentious vaccine advisory committee.

Officials disclosed that Martin Kulldorff will be stepping down from his role on the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices to embrace a new leadership position within the Department of Health and Human Services.

Taking over as the new chair is Dr. Kirk Milhoan, who has previously attributed vaccines to heart-related issues. Milhoan was initially appointed to this committee back in September.

The Department of Health and Human Services released a statement lauding Kulldorff’s contributions during his tenure. However, they refrained from providing further details regarding the leadership transition. Kulldorff has yet to respond to a request for comment via email.

This committee is tasked with advising the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s director on the utilization of vaccines that have already received approval. Historically, the CDC directors have consistently implemented the committee’s recommendations, which significantly influence medical practice and vaccination strategies nationwide.

Kennedy, a leading anti-vaccine activist before becoming the nation’s top health official, fired the entire 17-member panel earlier this year and replaced it with a group that includes several anti-vaccine voices. He also named Kulldorff as chairman.

Under Kulldorff’s leadership, the group made several decisions that angered major medical groups.

At a June meeting, the panel recommended that a preservative called thimerosal be removed from doses of flu vaccine even though some members acknowledged there was no proof it was causing harm.

In September, the group recommended new restrictions on a combination shot that protects against chickenpox as well as measles, mumps and rubella. The panel also took the unprecedented step of not recommending COVID-19 vaccinations — not even for high-risk populations like seniors — instead making it a matter of personal choice.

Several doctors’ groups said the changes were not based on good evidence, and advised doctors and patients to follow guidance that was previously in place.

Kulldorff’s departure leaves the vaccine committee with 11 members.

It will now be led by Milhoan, a pediatric cardiologist who with his wife operates a medical missionary organization called For Hearts and Souls. He appeared at a 2024 congressional hearing at which he said an increase in cardiovascular disease in older teens and young adults should be attributed to vaccines.

The committee is scheduled to meet later this week to discuss the pediatric vaccine schedule and hepatitis B shots given to newborns.

Kulldorff is a Swedish-born biostatistician who was a co-author of the Great Barrington Declaration, an October 2020 letter maintaining that pandemic shutdowns were causing irreparable harm.

During his time as ACIP chair, the committee abandoned its traditional “evidence-to-recommendation” framework, which involved many months of analysis and discussion before proposals came before the full committee for a vote.

In his new role, Kulldorff will become chief science officer within the HHS planning and evaluation office. Officials described the office as the department’s “in-house think tank.”

“I look forward to contributing to the science-based public health policies that will Make America Healthy Again,” Kulldorff said in the HHS press release.

___

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.