Cardiologist reportedly fired over role with CDC vaccine panel—wife calls it a ‘staggering turn of events’
Editor's Note: Click here for an update to this story.
Kirk Milhoan, MD, PhD, a veteran physician who was recently named the chair of the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), has reportedly been fired from his role as a pediatric cardiologist.
At this time, Milhoan has made no official statement about the news. Others close to the situation, however, have come forward with their own comments. The belief at this time is that he was fired over his new position with the ACIP.
News follows weeks of controversy surrounding US vaccine policies
Milhoan was named the new ACIP chair on Dec. 1, the same day HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced that its previous chair, Martin Kulldorff, PhD, was the new chief science officer for the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation.
It was known at the time that Milhoan had negative opinions about certain vaccine policies. In fact, he is a senior fellow with the Independent Medical Alliance (IMA), a group that has repeatedly challenged the safety of COVID-19 vaccines in recent years.
Kathryn Edwards, MD, a retired professor with Vanderbilt University Medical Center and a former ACIP member, questioned Milhoan’s new role in a Dec. 3 interview with MedPage Today.
“He really is not a vaccinologist—he's a cardiologist,” Edwards said at the time. “He's an expert on a side effect of one vaccine that Mr. Kennedy doesn't even want to give. So how could he be the leader of a group that is going to talk about a whole myriad of vaccines when he has no experience with testing vaccines, giving vaccines, assessing the side effects, understanding the immune responses, understanding the burden of disease?”
In the days after Milhoan was named to his new position, a CDC panel ruled that newborns should no longer receive a first dose of the hepatitis B vaccine within 24 hours of birth. To say this decision sparked controversy would be quite the understatement. While multiple medical societies have come out against the policy shift, the IMA and other groups have said they are in favor of the decision.
Kim Milhoan and the Independent Medical Alliance speak out about the apparent termination
Kim Milhoan, MD, an anesthesiologist in Hawaii and the wife of Kirk Milhoan, has written at length about her husband’s termination. He was specifically fired for his role with the ACIP, she emphasized in her comments. She added that she blames the decision on an “overwhelming number of calls” demanding that he be fired due to his opinions.
“The court of public opinion is dictating to a medical organization who can be on their staff, and they are bowing to it,” she wrote. “It is a staggering turn of events.”
According to her post, Kim Milhoan and her husband knew this appointment may not have a positive impact on his professional career due to the likelihood of controversy. However, she said, he wanted to serve his country, just as he had in the Air Force, and it was important to him to participate in this debate.
“My husband has been fired because of public outrage that he would choose to participate in scientific medical debate (in service to his country, I’d add) and make recommendations based on the best available evidence, even if that required a modification of previous practice, in support of principles of medical ethics,” she wrote. “This is what we do as physicians every day of our lives. But for some powerful segment of the population, there appears to be consensus that some topics or conclusions are off-limits and they can pressure to harm careers and livelihoods of those with the courage and integrity to investigate whether the science is truly settled. The irony is they are trying to destroy the career of someone who was on their side, but willing to re-examine the evidence.”
The IMA, meanwhile, shared its own statement about Milhoan losing his job as a pediatric cardiologist.
“I’m absolutely stunned,” Kat Lindley, DO, director of IMA’s fellowship program, said in the statement. “There is nobody with higher integrity and character, and who is more demanding of a scientific and data-backed approach to medicine than Dr. Milhoan. His removal simply because he is serving our nation on the most important vaccine advisory board is gross malpractice by his former employer, and utterly beyond comprehension.”
Michael has more than 19 years of experience as a professional writer and editor. He has written at length about cardiology, radiology, artificial intelligence and other key healthcare topics.