Behind the Curtain of the New CDC Panel on Vaccines

Dr. Robert Malone and Retsef Levi on American Thought Leaders – The Epoch Times

ROBERT W MALONE MD, MS JUL 6

American Thought Leaders – The Epoch Times

“Behind the Curtain of the New CDC Panel on Vaccines: Dr. Robert Malone and Retsef Levi”

After retiring the entire prior membership of the CDC Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) and appointing first eight, then seven (one could not resolve conflict of interest concerns) new ACIP members, a wave of coordinated media attacks on both Secretary Kennedy and those he appointed hit the internet, newsstands and corporate cable news broadcasts. This time, the approved narrative was that none of the newly appointed members were qualified or had any vaccine-related experience. Whether congratulations or condolences were due, I was one of those whom Secretary Kennedy appointed and passed the conflict of interest review. But what I actually am is a highly experienced academic and commercial vaccine developer, and all of my fellow appointees have deep, highly relevant experience and expertise. To the surprise of precisely no-one who has been paying attention to details or to how fake news media likes to spin up fear to advance the interests of their corporate sponsors.

The decisions made during the first meeting of the reconstituted ACIP were quite conservative (in the classical sense) and most definitely based on objective analysis of available data tempered with a focus on patients (and their children) rather than physician and corporate interests. However, after the meeting there was a lot of criticism of the decisions made. Criticism from all sides. It seems that no-one got exactly what they wanted, and they were mad as hell about it. The sense of entitlement ran strong in these ones.

I suggested that Epoch Times should be allowed to interview myself and Dr. Retsef Levi to discuss what just had happened during the meeting, and examine the logic, discussion and internal ACIP member dissent revolving around those decisions so that others can see for themselves how this new team approached these issues. Fortunately, the HHS Press Office agreed to this proposal, the resulting interview has now been released, and a copy is provided below in native Substack format so that you can view for free.

Hopefully this will demonstrate to all concerned that, in fact, the “new” ACIP committee is not a rubber stamp organization, that the members take their assigned tasks very seriously, and that they have the necessary knowledge, skills, and abilities to do the job and do it well. 

Yes, the interview gets a bit technical in places. We tried to avoid diving too deep into “The Science”. Please keep in mind that there are two general audiences being targeted here. First and most importantly, the citizens of the United States. Secondly, the nattering nabobs of the self-annointed vaccine expert caste. The deeper science discussions are targeting the latter, and demonstrate that these will continue to embarrass themselves if they persist with the false narrative that the new ACIP is inexperienced and incompetent. 

I hope that, at a minimum, each of you learn something from the interview. 

“This is the full version of Jan Jekielek’s interview with Dr. Robert Malone and Retsef Levi, released on July 5th, 2025. 

Recently, the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) met for the first time after Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. replaced its entire membership with new picks. In this episode, I’m sitting down with two new ACIP members, Dr. Robert Malone and MIT professor Retsef Levi, for a deep dive into all things ACIP. 

“They basically impact billions of dollars of revenue for the pharmaceutical industry. So there’s big money at stake here. There’s big policy at stake,” 

Malone. 

“One of the problems that we had in the context of vaccines, and more broadly maybe pharmaceutical products, is that debate was considered confusing to patients and something that we should avoid,” 

Levi

We take a look at some key discussions during the recent meeting, from thimerosal in certain flu vaccines to RSV shots for children, and what may happen with this committee moving forward. 

“What you’re seeing here is a firm commitment on the part of these two volunteers, and I think the committee as a whole, in trying to be open and transparent to the general public” 

Malone 

CHAPTER TITLES 

0:00:00 – Introduction to ACIP and New Committee Members 

0:09:09 – Understanding ACIP’s Role and Influence 

0:09:59 – Retsef Levi’s Background and Approach to Public Health 

0:13:11 – Robert Malone’s Background 

0:18:16 – The Importance of Open Debate in Medical Decision-Making 

0:22:01 – Patient Empowerment and Personalized Healthcare 0:28:06 – Challenges in Public Health Data Analysis 

0:31:03 – Influenza Vaccines and Thimerosal Removal 

0:40:57 – Mercury Exposure and Vaccine Safety Concerns 

0:47:10 – Immunotoxicity and Long-Term Vaccine Effects 

0:55:07 – Efficacy vs. Harm: Data Collection Challenges 

1:11:46 – RSV Shot Debate: Nuanced Perspectives 

1:34:02 – Risk-Benefit Analysis for Infant Vaccination 

1:37:46 – Closing Thoughts on ACIP’s Future and Mission 💛