Policies and Decisions in the National Government
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has been facing a tumultuous period, with the recent firing of its director, Susan Monarez. Monarez, who was the 21st director of the CDC and the first to pass through Senate confirmation following a 2023 law, was sworn in on July 31 but served for less than two months before her dismissal in August 2025.
Monarez had scheduled an "all hands meeting" for CDC staff, seen as an important step in addressing concerns among staff since the shooting incident on Aug. 8, where a Georgia man opened fire from a pharmacy across the street from CDC's main entrance. However, Health and Human Services (HHS) officials canceled it and called Monarez to Washington, D.C.
The CDC has been hit by widespread staff cuts, resignations of key officials, and heated controversy over long-standing CDC vaccine policies upended by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. At least four top CDC officials have resigned this week, including Dr. Debra Houry, Dr. Daniel Jernigan, Dr. Demetre Daskalakis, and Dr. Jennifer Layden.
Daskalakis, who worked closely with the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, resigned due to changes that put "people of dubious intent and more dubious scientific rigor in charge of recommending vaccine policy." He described Monarez as "hamstrung and sidelined by an authoritarian leader."
Monarez's lawyers claimed she was targeted for standing up for science. Sen. Patty Murray, a Washington Democrat, praised Monarez for standing up to Kennedy and called for him to be fired. The Washington Post first reported Monarez was ousted.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced Monarez's departure through a social media post. The Atlanta-based federal agency, initially founded to prevent the spread of malaria in the U.S., has since become a global leader on infectious and chronic diseases and a go-to source of health information.
The CDC's current interim director is Jim O’Neill, who took over after Monarez's dismissal. Dr. Monarez lamented the crippling effects on the agency from planned budget cuts, reorganization, and firings in an email. Some public health experts have decried the loss of so many of CDC's scientific leaders.
Kush Desai, a spokesman for the White House, stated that Monarez was not "aligned with" President Donald Trump's agenda. Monarez, during her Senate confirmation process, told senators that she values vaccines, public health interventions, and rigorous scientific evidence.
The CDC staff, already shell-shocked from the shooting incident and other recent changes, are left to grapple with the uncertainty of their agency's future. The hope remains that the new leadership will restore the CDC's reputation and focus on its mission to protect public health.
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