Communication was “hijacked”
An early directive that all public communications by agency staff must be reviewed before publication prevented scientists from communicating with external partners or even internally.
Daniel Jernigan, former director of the National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, told me:
The president and others told him to stop talking. I think what they probably meant was, “Please don't engage in public or in any way that attracts attention.” But there was a whole new demographic that had no public health experience, no government experience, no scientific knowledge, and they didn't know what to do. So everyone was told, “Please don't get involved. You can't even answer the phone.''
The CDC's public affairs efforts will be taken over by political appointees. Susan A. Wang, former senior medical advisor for the Global Immunization Division, said:
There was a very rigorous scientific process to vet the information published on the CDC website. Everything was checked and double checked. And it would be both devastating and dangerous for political appointees to take over the means of communication. Now, some things are right and some things are wrong. That means you can't trust any of them.
During the measles outbreak, Kennedy promoted unproven treatments in place of vaccines.
After a Texas child died from measles, the health secretary downplayed the outbreak in cabinet meetings and on television as “not uncommon,” even though it was the largest outbreak since measles was declared eradicated in the United States in 2000. said Demetre C. Daskalakis, former director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases.
As the outbreak spread, RFK was still praising doctors who were giving snake oil treatments to children with measles, including the corticosteroid budesonide and the antibiotic clarithromycin, and talking about how they saved hundreds of lives, which was complete garbage. We were asked to add these treatments to the measles guidelines. We have included language in our guidelines that has managed to alleviate this problem by stating that none of this is proven. Giving people the wrong medication delayed care for many children.
President Kennedy replaced CDC vaccine experts with people who share his views
In June, President Kennedy fired all 17 voting members of the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, which sets vaccine recommendations. In their place, he appointed people with far less expertise but who shared his views on vaccination. The new committee also made changes to long-standing vaccine recommendations for influenza, hepatitis B, and MMRV (measles, mumps, rubella, and varicella).
Fiona Havers, former medical epidemiologist in the Department of Respiratory Viruses, said:
I received a text from a lieutenant on my team that all of ACIP had been fired. And I thought my career at the CDC was over. I didn't want to be part of the machine they were trying to use to spread misinformation about vaccines and take away vaccines.
A federal judge this month temporarily blocked Mr. Kennedy from reconfiguring ACIP and changing the childhood vaccination schedule, saying he violated the Administrative Procedure Act, calling the secretary of health's changes to vaccine recommendations “arbitrary and capricious.”
The agency has been without a permanent director for most of the past year.
CDC officials told me that the agency has had little leadership since President Trump took office. President Kennedy appointed Susan Monales as acting director last January, but when she resigned in late March pending Senate confirmation as permanent director, no one was left in charge.
When senators raised the issue with Kennedy during a controversial hearing, Kennedy said Matt Buzzelli, the agency's chief of staff, was the interim leader. Monares' appointment was confirmed in late July. She was fired after 29 days, testifying before the Senate that Kennedy had led public health to a “very dangerous place” and that the nation's children would be harmed by his policies.
