"Driving the news: At the onset of the hearing, Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) referenced the secretary's past assurance that he would not make it difficult for people to access vaccines and asked for Kennedy to be formally sworn in. "That was clearly not true," Wyden said. Chairman Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) denied that request, saying, "We will treat this witness as we treat all of the other administration witnesses who come before us.""
"Friction point: Democratson the panel have signaled they're ready to grill Kennedy, with Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) describing attacks on the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) as "stupidity on steroids" and Sen. Tina Smith (D-Minn.) calling for his firing after his remarks about the Minneapolis mass shooting. But some Republican senators are also expected toput pressure on Kennedy at Thursday's hearing, Axios' Peter Sullivan reports."
"State of play: In his quest to secure confirmation earlier this year, Kennedy vowed not to hinder or discourage people from taking vaccines, but his new COVID vaccine policy limits access to the shot, Axios' Adriel Bettelheim writes. Zoom in: Kennedy has also removed all 17 members of the CDC's Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices, saying a "clean sweep" was "necessary to reestablish public confidence in vaccine science." Several of the new members he named have a history of expressing anti-vaccine sentiment or voicing concerns about COVID-19 or mRNA vaccines, Axios' Maya Goldman and Tina Reed reported."
Senators confronted Kennedy over apparent contradictions between his confirmation assurances and subsequent actions that affect vaccine access. Democrats signaled plans to aggressively question his attacks on the CDC and remarks tied to the Minneapolis mass shooting, while some Republicans demanded explanations for policy inconsistencies. Kennedy replaced all 17 members of the CDC's Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices, calling a "clean sweep" necessary to restore confidence, and appointed individuals with histories of vaccine skepticism. The policy changes have narrowed access to COVID vaccines and triggered scrutiny from both parties and public health observers.
Read at Axios
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