The votes in favor of Merck's shot are a sigh of relief after Kennedy gutted the panel and tapped replacements, some of whom are well-known vaccine critics.

U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s newly revamped vaccine advisory panel voted on Thursday to recommend use of Merck's recently approved RSV antibody drug for infants 8 months or younger whose mothers did not receive a preventive shot during pregnancy.

Merck's Enflonsia vaccine for respiratory syncytial virus won approval from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices.