Scientists Create New Autism Panel to Counter the One Selected by RFK Jr.

A group of scientists announced on March 3 the creation of an autism committee aimed at providing an alternative to the federal panel that is now made up of members selected by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Among the members of the new committee are Dr. Joshua Gordon, chair of the federal panel through 2024; former Pennsylvania Congressman Jim Greenwood, who helped establish the panel; and Helen Tager-Flusberg, an autism researcher and frequent Kennedy critic.

The entity is being called the Independent Autism Coordinating Committee (I-ACC). The long-established federal panel is the Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee (IACC).

Members of the I-ACC said they were spurred to launch the competing entity after Kennedy in January named 21 new members to the IACC, including a number who have said vaccines may, or do, cause autism. Toby Rogers, a fellow at the Brownstone Institute for Social and Economic Research, for instance, has said vaccines are the main cause of the spike in the United States of cases of autism, a disorder with symptoms such as inability to speak and difficulty dealing with sudden changes.

“The newly constituted Kennedy-appointed IACC represents a complete and unprecedented overhaul, with no continuity from prior committees and a striking absence of scientific expertise,” Alison Singer, one of the members of the I-ACC, said in a statement.

“It disproportionately represents a tiny subset of families who believe vaccines cause autism, while excluding the overwhelming majority of advocates and experienced autism researchers who support evidence-based science. The new I-ACC will ensure science, not misinformation, guides autism research.”

Singer is a previous IACC member and president of the Autism Science Foundation, which says there is no link between autism and vaccines.

Tager-Flusberg has taken issue with a number of moves from health agencies since Kennedy took office in early 2025, such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention saying it’s not clear whether vaccines cause autism. She said the new committee “restores the rigor and coordination needed to accurately assess progress and ensure that evidence-based progress continues to be made.”

Tager-Flusberg previously founded the Coalition of Autism Scientists, in reaction to the Department of Health and Human Services’ handling of autism research.

“The federal IACC will continue to fulfill President Trump’s directive to bring autism research to the 21st century and support breakthroughs in autism diagnosis, treatment, and prevention,” Emily Hilliard, a spokeswoman for the department, told The Epoch Times in an email.

It’s the latest example of some scientists breaking from the updated posture of the federal government on vaccines. The University of Minnesota’s Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy, in response to Kennedy replacing all members of the CDC’s vaccine advisory panel, started a new initiative called the Vaccine Integrity Project, which has since published its own reviews of certain vaccines, including the hepatitis B shot, that have been utilized by state health officials and others.

Based on the vaccine advisory panel’s advice, the CDC recently stopped recommending hepatitis B vaccination for newborns if their mothers tested negative for hepatitis B. The CDC also scaled back recommendations for five other vaccines.

A competing schedule published by the American Academy of Pediatrics, which partners with vaccine companies, is virtually the same as the CDC’s early 2025 schedule. Those recommendations have been retained by about half of the states in the country.

The IACC is charged with coordinating federal efforts on autism research and providing advice to the health secretary on autism-related issues.

Its next meeting—the first with the new members—will be on March 19 at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland. An agenda has not been released.

The I-ACC will be holding a meeting on the same day. The independent panel will be discussing the group’s key goals, sharing updates on the implementation of the 2024 Autism Collaboration, Accountability, Research, Education and Support Act, and going over strategies for developing a coordinated plan before turning to its next steps.