\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tJordan Miller\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSubmitted photo\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
By Jordan Miller | Arizona State University<\/p>\n
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, long considered the nation\u2019s \u2014 if not the world\u2019s \u2014\u00a0premier public health organization, is\u00a0mired in a crisis<\/a>\u00a0that not only threatens Americans\u2019 health but also its very survival as a leading public health institution.<\/p>\n The degree of this crisis was on full display during Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.\u2019s Sept. 4, 2025,\u00a0testimony before the U.S. Senate<\/a>.<\/p>\n In the hearing, Kennedy\u00a0openly criticized CDC professionals\u2019 response to the COVID-19 pandemic, saying \u201cthe people at CDC who oversaw that process, who put masks on our children, who closed our schools, are the people who will be leaving.\u201d<\/p>\n Kennedy\u2019s hearing came on the heels of a contentious week in which\u00a0Kennedy fired the CDC\u2019s director, Susan Monarez, spurring 12 members of the Senate Finance Committee \u2014 including 11 Democrats and independent Bernie Sanders \u2014 to\u00a0call on Kennedy to resign\u00a0from his position.<\/p>\n At least\u00a0four top CDC leaders resigned<\/a>\u00a0following Monarez\u2019s ouster, citing pressure from Kennedy to\u00a0depart from recommendations\u00a0based on sound scientific evidence.<\/p>\n I am a\u00a0teaching professor\u00a0and public health professional. Like\u00a0many of my colleagues, the disruption happening at the CDC in recent months has left me scrambling to find alternate credible sources of health information and feeling\u00a0deeply concerned for the future of public health<\/a>.<\/p>\n The CDC\u2019s unraveling<\/strong><\/p>\n These leadership shakeups come on the heels of months of targeted actions aimed at unraveling the CDC\u2019s structure, function and leadership as it has existed for decades.<\/p>\n The turmoil began almost as soon as President Donald Trump took office in January 2025, when his administration enacted sweeping cuts to the CDC\u2019s workforce that health experts broadly agree jeopardized its\u00a0ability to respond to emerging health threats<\/a>.<\/p>\n Trump used executive orders to\u00a0limit CDC employees\u2019 communication with the public<\/a>\u00a0and other external agencies,\u00a0like the World Health Organization.<\/p>\n Within weeks, he ordered as much as\u00a010% of the overall workforce to be cut.<\/p>\n Soon after, Kennedy \u2014 who was newly appointed by Trump \u2014 began undoing long-standing CDC institutions, like the\u00a0Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, replacing all 17 of its members in a move that was\u00a0widely denounced by health experts<\/a>.<\/p>\n Critics pointed to a lack of qualifications for the new committee members, with more than half never having published research on vaccinations and\u00a0many having predetermined hostility toward vaccines<\/a>.<\/p>\n In June, more than 20 authoritative organizations, including the National Medical Association and American Academy of Pediatrics, expressed serious concerns for the\u00a0health impacts of overhauling the advisory committee<\/a>.<\/p>\n How Monarez\u2019s removal spurred the crisis<\/strong><\/p>\n Public health leaders had cheered the\u00a0July confirmation of Monarez as the CDC\u2019s new director<\/a>, seeing her nomination as a welcome relief to those who value evidence-based practice in public health. Monarez is an\u00a0accomplished scientist and career public servant.<\/p>\n Many viewed her as a potential voice of scientific wisdom amid\u00a0untrained officials\u00a0appointed by Trump, who has a track record of\u00a0policies that undermine public health and science<\/a>.<\/p>\n In her role as acting director, to which she was appointed in January, Monarez had quietly presided over the\u00a0wave of cuts to the CDC workforce\u00a0and other moves that drastically reshaped the agency and\u00a0weakened the country\u2019s capacity to steward the nation\u2019s health.<\/p>\n Yet Monarez had\u00a0\u201cred lines\u201d that she would not cross<\/a>: She would not fire CDC leadership, and she would not endorse vaccine policies that ran contrary to scientifically supported recommendations.<\/p>\n According to Monarez,\u00a0Kennedy asked her to do both\u00a0in an\u00a0Aug. 27 meeting<\/a>. When she refused, he asked her to resign.<\/p>\n Her lawyers pushed back, arguing that only the president had the authority to remove her,\u00a0stating: \u201cWhen CDC Director Susan Monarez refused to rubber-stamp unscientific, reckless directives and fire dedicated health experts, she chose protecting the public over serving a political agenda. For that, she has been targeted.\u201d<\/p>\n Ultimately, the White House\u00a0made her dismissal official<\/a>\u00a0later that evening.<\/p>\n An agency in turmoil<\/strong><\/p>\n Further exemplifying and deepening the crisis at the agency, on Aug. 8, a gunman who had expressed anger over COVID-19 vaccinations\u00a0opened fire on CDC headquarters<\/a>, killing a police officer.<\/p>\n Many health workers attributed this directly to\u00a0misinformation spread by Kennedy<\/a>. The shooting amplified tensions and made tangible the sense of threat under which the CDC has been operating over the tumultuous months since Trump\u2019s second term began. One employee stated that \u201cthe CDC is crumbling<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n \n Public health experts, including former CDC directors, are sounding the alarm, speaking out about the\u00a0precariousness of the agency\u2019s position<\/a>. Some are\u00a0questioning whether the CDC can even survive.<\/p>\n A crisis of trust<\/strong><\/p>\n Even before the most recent shock waves, Americans said they were\u00a0losing trust and confidence in CDC guidance<\/a>: In April, 44% of U.S. adults polled said that they will place less trust in CDC recommendations under the new leadership. This would undoubtedly undermine the U.S. response if the country faces another public health challenge requiring a rapid, coordinated response, like COVID-19.<\/p>\n In addition to installing new members on the vaccine advisory committee, Kennedy abruptly changed the recommendations for flu and COVID-19 vaccines\u00a0without input from the CDC or the vaccine advisory committee, and\u00a0contrary to data presented by CDC scientists.<\/p>\n Public health professionals and advocates are now warning the public that vaccine recommendations coming from the CDC\u2019s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices may not be trustworthy. They point to the\u00a0lack of credibility\u00a0in the review process for the new committee, the fact that members have made statements\u00a0contrary to scientific evidence\u00a0in the past, and\u00a0failure to apply\u00a0an evidence-to-recommendations framework as compromising factors. Critics of the committee even describe a\u00a0lack of basic understanding\u00a0of the science behind vaccines.<\/p>\n Health impacts are being felt in real time, with health care providers\u00a0reporting confusion among parents<\/a>\u00a0as a result of the conflicting vaccine recommendations. Now, those who want to be vaccinated are facing barriers to access, with major retailers placing\u00a0new limits on vaccine access<\/a>\u00a0in the face of federal pressure. This as vaccination rates were already declining,\u00a0largely due to misinformation.<\/p>\n The end result is an environment in which the credibility of the CDC is in question because people are unsure whether recommendations made in the CDC\u2019s name are coming from the science and scientists or from the politicians who are in charge.<\/p>\n Filling the gaps<\/strong><\/p>\n Reputable organizations are working to fill the void created by the CDC\u2019s precariousness and the fact that recommendations are now being made based on political will, rather than scientific evidence.<\/p>\n The American Academy of Pediatrics<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0the American College of Gynecology<\/a>\u00a0have both released recommended vaccination schedules that, for the first time,\u00a0diverge from CDC recommendations<\/a>.<\/p>\n And medical organizations are\u00a0discussing strategies\u00a0that include giving more weight to their recommendations than the CDC\u2019s and creating pathways for clinicians to obtain vaccines directly from manufacturers. These measures would create\u00a0workarounds to compensate<\/a>\u00a0for CDC leadership voids.<\/p>\n Some states, including\u00a0California, Oregon, Washington<\/a>\u00a0and New Mexico, are establishing their own guidance regarding vaccinations. Public health scientists and physicians are attempting to\u00a0preserve data and surveillance systems<\/a>\u00a0that the\u00a0Trump administration has been removing. But independent organizations may not be able to sustain this work without federal funding.<\/p>\n What\u2019s at stake<\/strong><\/p>\n As part of its crucial work in every facet of public health, the CDC oversees larger-scale operations,\u00a0both nationally and globally<\/a>, that cannot simply be handed off to states or individual organizations. Some public health responses \u2014 such as to\u00a0infectious diseases\u00a0and\u00a0foodborne illnesses\u00a0\u2014 must be coordinated at the national level in order to be effective, since health risks are shared across state borders.<\/p>\n In a health information space that is\u00a0awash with misinformation<\/a>, having accurate, reliable health statistics and evidence-based guidelines is essential for public health educators like me to know what information to share and how to design effective health programs. Doctors and other clinicians rely on disease tracking to know how best to approach treating patients presenting with infections. The COVID-19 pandemic made clear the importance of laboratory science, a unified emergency response and rapid distribution of effective vaccines to the public.<\/p>\n One of the strengths of the American system of governance is its ability to approach challenges \u2014 including public health \u2014 in a coordinated way, having a federal level of cooperation that unifies state-level efforts.<\/p>\n The CDC has been the\u00a0nation\u2019s preeminent public health institution\u00a0for more than eight decades as a result of its vast reach and unparalleled expertise. Right now, it\u2019s all sitting at a precarious edge.<\/p>\n Editor\u2019s note: Jordan Miller<\/a> is a teaching professor of public health at\u00a0Arizona State University<\/a>. This was first published via The Conversation<\/a>. Please submit comments at\u00a0yourvalley.net\/letters<\/a> or email them to AzOpinions@inusua.org.\u00a0We are committed to publishing a wide variety of reader opinions, as long as they meet our\u00a0Civility Guidelines<\/a>.<\/p>\n \n\t\tKeywords<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tenters for Disease Control and Prevention,\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t CDC,\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t Robert F. Kennedy Jr.,\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t vaccines,\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t Susan Monarez,\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Jordan Miller Submitted photo By Jordan Miller | Arizona State University The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":211209,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5131],"tags":[25208,5229,5643,1587,16460,115753,1589,15010,81355,67,586,132,5230,68,2969,2857],"class_list":{"0":"post-211208","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-phoenix","8":"tag-advisory-committee-on-immunization-practices","9":"tag-america","10":"tag-arizona","11":"tag-az","12":"tag-cdc","13":"tag-enters-for-disease-control-and-prevention","14":"tag-phoenix","15":"tag-robert-f-kennedy-jr","16":"tag-susan-monarez","17":"tag-united-states","18":"tag-united-states-of-america","19":"tag-unitedstates","20":"tag-unitedstatesofamerica","21":"tag-us","22":"tag-usa","23":"tag-vaccines"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115170984766474966","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/211208","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=211208"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/211208\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/211209"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=211208"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=211208"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=211208"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}