A CDC official who oversaw the agency’s Respiratory Virus Hospitalization Surveillance Network, known as RESP-NET, has resigned, citing concerns about how the data will be used to inform vaccine policy, according to CBS News.
Fiona Havers, MD, departed her role June 16, according to an internal agency announcement. The RESP-NET program she led collects and analyzes data on hospitalizations tied to COVID-19, influenza and respiratory syncytial virus. Her work was frequently cited during meetings of the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, which makes recommendations on vaccine use in the U.S.
“I no longer have confidence that these data will be used objectively or evaluated with appropriate scientific rigor to make evidence-based vaccine policy decisions,” Dr. Havers wrote in an email to colleagues, according to CBS News. “Of all the work we have accomplished, I am most proud of how COVID-NET and RSV-NET hospitalization data, presented at nearly every public ACIP meeting since 2020, have been critical drivers of COVID-19 and RSV vaccine policy in recent years.”
Her departure follows a series of disruptive changes at the agency and its vaccine advisory panel. On June 11, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. dismissed all 17 ACIP members and appointed eight new ones — several of whom have previously shared anti-vaccine rhetoric or made scientifically unfounded claims. A week earlier, Lakshmi Panagiotakopoulos, MD, who co-led ACIP’s COVID-19 vaccine workgroup, also resigned.
In response to Dr. Havers’ resignation, a spokesperson for HHS told CBS News, “Under Secretary Kennedy’s leadership, HHS is committed to following the gold standard of scientific integrity. Vaccine policy decisions will be based on objective data, transparent analysis, and evidence — not conflicts of interest or industry influence.”
The overhaul of ACIP and the resignation of veteran experts have prompted concern among medical and public health leaders. In a JAMA viewpoint published June 16, all 17 terminated ACIP members criticized HHS’ decision to disband the panel, writing that the move “may roll back the achievements of U.S. immunization policy, impact people’s access to lifesaving vaccines, and ultimately put U.S. families at risk of dangerous and preventable illnesses.”
