The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has renewed the charter for its Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), retroactively effective to April 1, 2026. This two-year renewal is not unexpected, as HHS provided a notice of charter renewal in the Federal Register earlier this month, but several changes to the charter language provide a glimpse into the priorities of HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy and other CDC leadership. After a major ruling in March pressed pause on all ACIP recommendations and changes to the childhood vaccine schedule, retroactive to June 2024, HHS leadership has been quiet about their future plans for the committee, which is charged with evaluating the safety and efficacy of vaccines and related products before providing recommendations to the general public. These recommendations not only help to inform medical best practices, but have insurance coverage implications as well. As we have written about previously, vaccines covered by the Vaccines for Children program, which provides vaccines at no cost to nearly half of America’s children, are directly linked to recommendations by the committee. Additionally, while some states are moving away from following ACIP’s recommendations solely, many others rely on ACIP to provide evidence-based recommendations to inform their own vaccine laws and regulations.
Compared to the previous charter, signed in December 2025 by Secretary Kennedy, this updated document makes some key language additions and changes to the structure of the committee. The committee’s mission now includes providing guidance on vaccines and related agents that would “decrease symptomatology” of vaccine-preventable diseases, instead of just controlling them. The committee’s objective also includes new language on identifying “gaps in vaccine safety research including adverse effects following vaccination.” Recommendations made by the committee had historically been posted in the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) with an overview of the safety, efficacy, and recommendation logic made by the committee. The updated charter states that this “may” happen, but is no longer required. The previous charter noted three meetings annually, or more as needed; the updated charter states, “Meetings will be held at the discretion of the ACIP DFO in consultation with the Chair,” with no mention of frequency. These language changes, combined with a decreased annual budget, signal a possible decrease in activity for the committee.
While the charter does not change the number of appointed voting members, it gives power to Secretary Kennedy and other leaders to add experts in non-medical fields, such as statistical analysis, health economics and “recovery from serious vaccine injuries.” Additionally, the charter adds four new non-voting liaison members, including the Independent Medical Alliance and Physicians for Informed Consent, both of which are considered to be main players in the anti-vax movement. Notably missing from the list of non-voting liaison members is the American College of Obstetricians & Gynecologists, which formally withdrew from participation in the committee earlier this year.
These changes are being heralded as a major win with groups like the Children’s Health Defense, a prominent anti-vaccine group, and related members, such as lawyer Aaron Siri. Earlier this year, Siri, on behalf of the Informed Consent Action Network, sent recommendations to Secretary. Kennedy on altering the ACIP charter to shift its focus to vaccine risk, limit its power, and add several liaison members that are organizations critical to the anti-vax movement. Some of these recommendations appear to be adopted in the current charter. If these changes are any indication of the future of federal vaccine policy, children remain at risk.