A US District Court has issued a preliminary injunction freezing appointments to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP). The court cited likely conflicts with the Federal Advisory Committee Act and found most members appointed last year by Robert F Kennedy Jr to be unqualified.
Judge Brian Murphy also halted all votes taken by the ACIP, pausing a revised US vaccine schedule issued on January 5, 2026, overturning a Secretarial Directive on COVID-19 vaccine recommendations, and reversing downgraded Hepatitis B vaccine recommendations. The injunction followed a lawsuit by US health societies and associations challenging recent HHS directives that plaintiffs claim circumvented established procedures for developing vaccine guidance.
Experts warn the ruling leaves the CDC without an operational advisory panel for new vaccines, potentially impacting insurance coverage for newly licensed vaccines as several await ACIP review.