The Standing Vaccination Commission (Stiko), which is responsible for vaccination recommendations in Germany, will be largely reorganized. Stiko has achieved great achievements during the pandemic, said Federal Health Minister Karl Lauterbach (SPD) on Monday, according to a statement. “Now it will be younger and even more interdisciplinary with many new members from very different disciplines.”
The Federal Ministry of Health, in consultation with the highest health authorities of the federal states, has appointed new members of the voluntary committee on a rotating basis. The future 19-member group will meet for a constituent meeting on March 12th and 13th, where they will also elect a new chairman, as a ministry spokesman announced. According to the ministry, Stiko will be expanded to include experts in the areas of modeling and communication. Specialists from virology, immunology and general medicine as well as from health authorities are also represented.
A large number of the previous 17 Stiko members are now leaving. Among them is the virologist Thomas Mertens, chairman of the committee since 2017. He had already announced a long time ago that he would no longer be available for another term of office. Among the experts who remain at Stiko are the virologist Klaus Überla (University Hospital Erlangen) and Jörg Meerpohl from the Cochrane Center Germany.
The major personnel changes had been announced for some time. As a result, the appointment period was also limited to a maximum of three periods of three years each. This is intended to help ensure the independence of the committee, as the ministry said.
The Stiko makes recommendations on vaccinations for the population in Germany. During the Corona crisis, there was also some criticism of the committee’s work; for example, the experts were accused of slow decision-making processes.
