Bill Cassidy Questions Former CDC Deputy Director on Hepatitis B Vaccine Review Bias

Concerns Over Hepatitis B Vaccine Review

• 📌 Senator Bill Cassidy questioned former CDC Deputy Director Dr. Debra Houry regarding a systematic review on the birth-dose hepatitis B vaccine.
• ⚠️ Dr. Houry addressed claims that the review was biased, stating that the reviewer suggested questions that could lead to bias before the review was developed.

Review Process and External Influence

• 🔬 The reviewer, Stuart Burns, suggested incorporating 70 additional papers, including some in foreign languages, into the review.
• 🗣️ Dr. Houry explained that the CDC follows a systematic process and could not speak to the data until it was fully analyzed.
• 🏛️ She indicated that the reviewer's suggestions might have represented the Secretary's viewpoint, as the Secretary had suggested moving the birth dose.

Status of the Review

• ⏳ Dr. Houry stated that the systematic review was underway when she left the CDC three weeks prior to the hearing.
• ❓ She was unsure if the review was completed and could not confirm if the suggested references were included, but noted that valid methods would lead to inclusion.