Drama
HHS spokesperson Andrew Nixon then released a statement to the media alluding to Malone’s retreat and saying, “Until we officially announce, any claims about what we are doing next are baseless speculation.”
Malone told Roll Call today that Nixon’s reaction led to his departure. “After Andrew insulted me in the press, I am out of business with CDC and ACIP,” Malone said in a text message Tuesday morning. “That was the last straw.”
“Suffice it to say, I don’t like drama and I have better things to do,” he said.
HHS Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Rich Danker and former ACIP Chairman Martin Kulldorff, who now serves as HHS’s chief science officer, contacted Roll Call on Tuesday to confirm Malone’s departure and provide a statement defending Nixon. “In light of the court’s decision and the enormous amount of volunteer time provided by ACIP members to improve public health, I can sympathize with that.” [Malone’s] Kulldorff reportedly said, “The decision to step aside. As far as Andrew Nixon is concerned, I found him to be professional and honest in all his actions supporting ACIP.” Kulldorff and Danker declined further comment.
Malone, in contrast, had not finished speaking. In further comments to The New York Times, he said that his departure “was not an impulsive decision.”
He said, “Hundreds of hours of uncompensated labor, incredible hatred from many quarters, a hostile press, internal strife, weapons leaks, sabotage—I have better things to do.”
Joseph Hibbeln, another ACIP member selected by Kennedy who often disagreed with Malone, told the Times that Malone’s stated desire to avoid drama “contrasts with his previous dramatic and confusing statements.”
“It’s good that Dr. Malone now wants to reduce the drama regarding vaccines,” Hibbeln said.
<a href