CDC Former Leaders Critique Health and Human Services Secretary

During a Senate committee hearing on Wednesday, two former leaders of the CDC are set to criticize Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. based on their experiences.

Former CDC Director Susan Monares has stated that she was dismissed for “holding a line on scientific integrity” and didn’t resign despite pressure from Kennedy. Notably, she was removed just weeks after being confirmed by the Senate, and her ousting led to the resignation of four other top leaders at the CDC, including Houry.

In her testimony, Chief Medical Officer Debra Hoai, who will also speak before the committee, indicated that plans to align with the Trump administration’s health goals were in place prior to Kennedy’s swearing-in, but those plans shifted once he took office. She suggested that his leadership “significantly weakened and undermined” the CDC’s capacity to safeguard American health.

The Trump administration pointed out that Monares’s approach didn’t align with their health objectives; however, she has pushed back against those claims. She asserted, “I have never been misplaced by administrative priorities,” emphasizing that her confirmation hearing highlighted commitments to public protection and scientific rigor.

Kennedy alleged in a recent Senate hearing that Monares expressed a lack of trust. In response, she shared her perspective, saying, “If he believed he couldn’t trust me, he could fire me.”

Houry corroborated Monares’s statements, revealing that expertise was no longer valued under their leadership. Their testimonies come just before a crucial meeting of the CDC’s advisory committee on vaccination practices, which involves discussions and voting on vaccine recommendations.

Earlier this year, Kennedy dismissed all 17 sitting members of the committee, replacing them with his appointed choices. Recently, he announced the addition of five more members.

Senator Bill Cassidy (R-La.), chair of the Help Committee, has requested a postponement of the meeting, citing the significant turnover and reduced size within the agency at this time. He expressed concern that proceeding without a delay might lead to skepticism regarding the recommendations made.

Monares and Hoai have urged caution about the committee’s future guidance, highlighting the recent measles outbreak in Texas as an example of the consequences of undermining scientifically supported preventive measures like vaccines.

They warned that there’s a genuine risk of recommending policies that could limit access to vaccines without adequate scientific reviews, particularly with no permanent CDC director in place. Monares stated, “These recommendations could be adopted despite the lack of rigorous scrutiny.”

Houry added that under Secretary Kennedy, the committee seems to be replaced with known critics of vaccines and is operating under diminished transparency, disregarding established scientific practices. She emphasized, “Trust is vital. If recommendations seem biased towards ideology rather than science, even well-supported suggestions may be dismissed. Unfortunately, this is the direction we are heading.”