The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention chose Retsef Levi, a management and health analytics expert at MIT, to lead its COVID-19 immunization workgroup. Levi announced on X that he is “looking forward to working with colleagues… to pursue the truth through science and evidence-based approach.”
Levi, one of the eight new ACIP members appointed to the committee just days after Robert F. Kennedy removed the 17 sitting members, has been an outspoken critic of COVID vaccines. In 2023, Levi posted a video to X stating that the COVID-19 vaccines caused “an unprecedented level of harm, including death, of young people and children.” The video is still pinned to his account.
Retsef Levi’s X video
The evidence is mounting and indisputable that MRNA vaccines cause serious harm including death, especially among young people. We have to stop giving them immediately! pic.twitter.com/chFLvqlDqu
— Retsef Levi (@RetsefL) January 30, 2023
In the video, Levi presents his opinion that all mRNA vaccine programs should stop immediately because they fail to reach their efficacy promises and the “unprecedented” level of harm they cause, including the death of young people. Levi explains that he became concerned about mRNA vaccines in 2021, when it was discovered that they cause myocarditis, inflammation of the heart, which is hard to diagnose and can cause cardiac arrest. He cites EMS data in Israel, which saw an increase in cardiac arrests caused by myocarditis which coincided with the start of the vaccine program. He states that this is not proof of a causal relationship. He added that he now believes there is solid proof that the vaccines cause myocarditis in global data. He calls the vaccine “the most failed medical product in the history of medical products”.
The new ACIP’s first meeting
At the ACIP meeting in June, Levi raised concerns about clesrovimab (enflonsia), an FDA-approved monoclonal antibody to protect infants against RSV. He cited deaths in the clinical trials. Experts from the CDC, FDA and manufacturer said the data showed no association between the deaths and the treatment.
Retsef Levi at the ACIP meeting in June
At the same meeting, the committee overturned longstanding vaccine recommendations, especially influenza vaccines containing thimerosal, which has been falsely linked to autism.
RFK is facing backlash from CDC employees
Amidst this new development, CDC employees are still reeling from a recent shooting at the CDC headquarters in Atlanta on Aug. 8. In response to the violent attack, hundreds of CDC employees last week signed a letter stating, “Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., is complicit in dismantling America’s public health infrastructure and endangering the nation’s health by repeatedly spreading inaccurate health information.”
The letter calls on Kennedy to stop spreading misinformation, affirm the CDC’s scientific integrity and guarantee the safety of the HHS workforce.
The shooter, Patrick Joseph White, had written about his discontent with COVID-19 vaccines and wishing to make his opinions known. A police officer, David Rose, was the only victim killed in the shooting. The letter also honored Rose and his sacrifice.
Filed Under: Immunology
