July 29, 2025
Washington, DC – In case you missed it, U.S. Senators Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.), a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, introduced the Validating and Advancing Clinical Consensus through Independent Nonpartisan Evaluation (VACCINE) Act, S.2483, legislation that would protect vaccine science and integrity by strengthening protections for the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP). The legislation would prevent the baseless termination of ACIP members and direct an immediate reappointment of members on the advisory committee who were recently fired.
This legislation comes after Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s unprecedented termination of all the members of the ACIP committee without cause, a move that has the potential to sow public doubt in vaccine integrity. Secretary Kennedy is also reportedly working to dismantle U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, which decides which cancer screenings and other preventive healthcare measures must be covered by insurers and has helped Americans stay healthy for more than 40 years.
“For decades, ACIP has been a pillar in our health institutions, providing safe, reliable, science-backed guidance on vaccines that have ultimately led to saving countless lives,” said Senator Blunt Rochester. “The Secretary’s baseless and punitive action to fire every member of ACIP, including doctors, nurses, scientists, and public health experts, casts doubt on vaccine safety and jeopardizes access to affordable, effective vaccines for the American public. Replacing these experts with conspiracy theorists and anti-vaxxers is the first step toward putting lives at risk. This bill would reverse Mr. Kennedy’s decision and help repair the chaos and confusion he is casting over our nation’s public health system.”
The bill is co-sponsored by U.S. Senators Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), and Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.).
Blunt Rochester has been outspoken in her defense of scientific integrity when it comes to vaccines. In mid-July, she authored an op-ed in Newsweek outlining the consequences of Secretary Kennedy’s vaccine skepticism. In late June, she pushed the nominee for CDC Director, Dr. Susan Monarez, on what these actions mean for vaccine affordability for families sending their kids to school. Blunt Rochester also joined with Senators Luján and Warnock to send a letter to Senator Kennedy decrying his installation of vaccine skeptics on ACIP, along with 19 of their colleagues. She additionally joined U.S. Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) to send Secretary Kennedy a letter condemning changes to the recommended vaccine schedule that will especially impact children and pregnant women.
The full text of the bill can be viewed here.
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Senator Lisa Blunt Rochester represents Delaware in the United States Senate where she serves on the Committees on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs; Commerce, Science, and Transportation; Environment and Public Works; and Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.