"My termination, unfortunately, shows that the leaders of HHS and the National Institutes of Health do not share my commitment to scientific integrity and public health," Marrazzo wrote in a statement following her firing. Marrazzo claimed Memoli made statements downplaying the importance of vaccines that closely mirrored the views of Kennedy, a longtime vaccine skeptic. In a series of meetings, Memoli argued that "vaccines are unnecessary if populations are healthy," and that the NIH "should not focus on vaccines," Marrazzo alleged in her complaint. Marrazzo told CBS News it was like "hearing the echo of" the vaccine skepticism often promoted by Kennedy. In June, Kennedy removed all 17 members of the Advisory Committee on Vaccine Practices, which makes vaccine recommendations to the Centers for Disease Control.