Trump administration removes head of America’s top public health agency

The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) was thrown into turmoil on August 27 after the Trump administration moved to remove Susan Monarez, who had been confirmed as the agency’s director less than a month ago.

Monarez’s lawyers stated that she had not resigned and accused the administration of targeting her for her pro-science stance, Caliber.Az reports, citing foreing media.

An unsigned statement from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) confirmed that Monarez was no longer CDC director but offered no explanation for the decision. Her lawyers insisted that she had received no formal notice from the White House and condemned the move as an attempt to weaponise public health for political gain.

Reports indicate that Monarez clashed with Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. after she refused to support sweeping changes to U.S. vaccine policies. Her lawyers said that by resisting unscientific directives and refusing to dismiss dedicated public health experts, Monarez chose to protect the public over advancing a political agenda.

The sudden ousting sparked a wave of resignations among senior CDC officials. Dr. Demetre Daskalakis, director of the National Centre for Immunisation and Respiratory Diseases, stepped down, citing the politicisation of public health.

Dr. Deb Houry, the agency’s chief medical officer, warned that CDC science should never be censored or subject to political interpretation. Daniel Jernigan, head of the Centre for Emerging Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, also resigned.

The upheaval coincided with controversial FDA decisions that revoked the emergency use authorisation for Pfizer, Moderna, and Novavax COVID-19 vaccines for most Americans, leaving only people 65 and older or those with underlying health conditions eligible. The move followed approval from a reshaped advisory panel that includes vaccine sceptics, despite CDC experts estimating that the vaccines had saved 3.2 million lives in the United States.

Monarez, 50, became the 21st CDC director and the first to be confirmed under a 2023 Senate law. She was sworn in on July 31, making her the shortest-serving director in the agency’s 79-year history.

Public health experts have raised alarms over the sudden leadership vacuum. Dr. Craig Spencer of Brown University described the situation as “absolute chaos that leaves the country unprepared.”

Dr. Jonathan Reiner of George Washington University said that Kennedy was increasingly becoming a liability for the White House, while Dr. Ashish Jha, the Biden administration’s COVID-19 response coordinator, described the mass resignations as a “total implosion” of CDC leadership.

By Tamilla Hasanova