RFK recently fired the entire panel that advises the CDC about vaccines. The press dropped the ball on the reasons, so I asked Gemini to investigate their conflicts of interest. It actually did a remarkably good job - would you like to see what it found? 👇🧵
First up, Dr. Yvonne Maldonado (Stanford). A leading pediatric vaccine expert.
COI: Acted as site Principal Investigator (PI) for Pfizer's COVID-19 & RSV vaccine trials.
Also a site PI for an AstraZeneca vaccine trial.
Previously served on a Pfizer data safety monitoring board.
COI: Acted as site Principal Investigator (PI) for Pfizer's COVID-19 & RSV vaccine trials.
Also a site PI for an AstraZeneca vaccine trial.
Previously served on a Pfizer data safety monitoring board.
Next, Dr. Noel T. Brewer (UNC), an expert on vaccine uptake.
COI: His influential HPV vaccine communication research was backed by grants & paid advisory board roles for Merck & GSK.
His "HPV IQ" project also received an "unrestricted educational grant" from Pfizer.
COI: His influential HPV vaccine communication research was backed by grants & paid advisory board roles for Merck & GSK.
His "HPV IQ" project also received an "unrestricted educational grant" from Pfizer.
Dr. Edwin Asturias (U. of Colorado), a global health specialist.
COI: Received grant/research support from Pfizer.
Received honoraria (speaking/consulting fees) from Merck.
Served on Data Safety Monitoring Boards for CureVac & Inovio, giving him deep insight into their trial data.
COI: Received grant/research support from Pfizer.
Received honoraria (speaking/consulting fees) from Merck.
Served on Data Safety Monitoring Boards for CureVac & Inovio, giving him deep insight into their trial data.
Dr. Lin H. Chen (Harvard), a travel medicine expert.
COI: Served as a site PI for an investigational new drug program run by Sanofi Pasteur.
Was also the site PI for a study on a specific Sanofi yellow fever vaccine.
COI: Served as a site PI for an investigational new drug program run by Sanofi Pasteur.
Was also the site PI for a study on a specific Sanofi yellow fever vaccine.
What about indirect ties? Take Dr. Albert C. Shaw (Yale), an expert on immunity in aging.
Institutional Proximity: While his personal COIs weren't detailed, a close colleague in his department at Yale has declared consulting fees from Pfizer, Merck, & GSK and runs research at Yale funded by Pfizer & Merck.
Institutional Proximity: While his personal COIs weren't detailed, a close colleague in his department at Yale has declared consulting fees from Pfizer, Merck, & GSK and runs research at Yale funded by Pfizer & Merck.
For contrast, there's Ms. Charlotte Moser (Consumer Rep. at CHOP).
Independence: Her Vaccine Education Center has an explicit policy: it does not receive any funding from vaccine manufacturers, ensuring its financial independence from the industry.
Independence: Her Vaccine Education Center has an explicit policy: it does not receive any funding from vaccine manufacturers, ensuring its financial independence from the industry.
The Takeaway: At least 9 of the 14 profiled members had direct financial links (personal/research funding) or worked in institutions with declared industry funding. This raises systemic questions about influence that go far beyond individual members abstaining from a vote
You can read the full and very detailed report here:
docs.google.com/document/d/e/2…
docs.google.com/document/d/e/2…
And even more fun, I even managed to make a simulator that uses a simple AI model to predict decisions from the panel considering their personal interests. It's actually quite fun:
g.co/gemini/share/4…
g.co/gemini/share/4…
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