WASHINGTON (TNND) — Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s vaccine advisory committee will review the childhood vaccination schedule weeks after every member of a scientific committee that advises the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was removed.

On Thursday, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) will hear a presentation from Lyn Redwood, a former leader of Kennedy's anti-vaccine group, about the use of thimerosal in flu vaccines.

Thimerosal is a mercury-based preservative that has been used in vaccines and other medical products since the 20th century to prevent bacterial and fungal contamination, according to the CDC.

Kennedy has long held that there was a tie between thimerosal and autism, and also accused the government of hiding the danger. Study after study has found no evidence that thimerosal causes autism. But since 2001, vaccines manufactured for the U.S. market and routinely recommended for children 6 years or younger have contained no thimerosal or only trace amounts, with limited exceptions.

The seven members picked by Kennedy, who replaced the previous 17-member ACIP, first met on Wednesday with the new chair, Dr. Martin Kulldorff, saying all shots given to children would be reviewed, including a vaccine for hepatitis B given at birth.

The ACIP, created more than 60 years ago, helps the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention determine who should be vaccinated against a long list of diseases, and when. Those recommendations have a big impact on whether insurance covers vaccinations and where they’re available.

Kennedy also announced that the U.S. will pull funding from the global vaccines group, Gavi, due to the organization "ignoring the science" and "losing public trust."

"When vaccine safety issues have come before GAVI, it has treated them not as a patient health problem, but as a public relations problem," he stated in a video. "During the COVID-19 pandemic, GAVI partnered with the World Health Organization to recommend best practices for social media companies to silence dissenting views and to stifle free speech and legitimate questions during that period."

Kennedy called on Gavi to "re-earn the public trust and to justify the $8 billion that America has provided in funding since 2021."

Gavi responded on Thursday by saying its "utmost concern is the health and safety of children."

"Any decision made by Gavi with regards to its vaccine portfolio is made in alignment with recommendations by WHO’s Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunization (SAGE)," the group said, adding that scientists had reviewed all available data, including any studies that raised concerns, and that the diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis vaccine has “played a key role in helping halve childhood mortality.”

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Editor's note: The Associated Press contributed to this article.