WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has fired all members sitting on a U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention panel of vaccine experts and is reconstituting the committee, his department said on Monday.

Kennedy removed all 17 members of the CDC’s Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices, the Department of Health and Human Services said in a statement, and is in the process of considering new members to replace them.

“Today we are prioritizing the restoration of public trust above any specific pro- or anti-vaccine agenda,” Kennedy said. “The public must know that unbiased science—evaluated through a transparent process and insulated from conflicts of interest—guides the recommendations of our health agencies.”

All 17 sitting ACIP members were appointed under former President Joe Biden’s administration, including 13 in 2024, HHS said. Not removing them would have prevented President Donald Trump’s administration from choosing a majority of the committee until 2028.

“That’s a tragedy,” said former Food and Drug Administration Chief Scientist Jesse Goodman. “This is a highly professional group of scientist and physicians and others …. It’s the kind of political meddling that will reduce confidence rather than increase confidence.

ACIP will convene its next meeting June 25-27 at CDC headquarters in Atlanta, the department said.

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(Reporting by Ahmed Aboulenein in Washington and Michael Erman in New York; Additional reporting by Puyaan Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)