Former Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Dr. Susan Monarez recently delivered bombshell testimony to a Senate panel, revealing explosive details about her firing and the chaotic state of the agency under Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Dr. Monarez recounted a “tense private meeting” with Kennedy, where he allegedly branded CDC employees “corrupt” and accused them of “killing children.” She asserted that her dismissal stemmed from her unwavering commitment to “scientific integrity.” Dr. Monarez firmly rejected Kennedy’s directives to terminate senior CDC scientists and to endorse vaccine recommendations from his handpicked advisory panel without proper data or scientific review. She described Kennedy as a leader driven by personal ideology, seemingly indifferent to the expertise of government scientists, and accused him of attempting to isolate her from career experts and congressional communication by funneling all decisions through political appointees. “Signing off on decisions not grounded in the best available data and evidence endangers our children and others who rely on these vaccines, pushing public health into a very dangerous place,” Monarez warned.
(An accompanying image depicts Dr. Susan Monarez testifying in a congressional hearing room, her expression serious as she describes the turmoil within the CDC.)
The hearing laid bare the profound disarray gripping the nation’s public health apparatus, an agency long under scrutiny from Secretary Kennedy. He has previously defended his overhaul of the CDC, asserting that the U.S. is “the sickest country in the world” and that CDC personnel were dismissed for failing to “keep us healthy.” In response to Monarez’s allegations, Kennedy’s spokesman, Andrew Nixon, countered that she was terminated for “maliciously undermining the president’s agenda” and that the Secretary is committed to “restoring public trust in the CDC through transparency, accountability, and diverse scientific input.”
Adding to the alarming testimony, Dr. Debra Houry, another former CDC official and chief medical officer who served across four administrations, echoed Monarez’s concerns and called for Kennedy’s resignation. Dr. Houry detailed a climate of fear among CDC vaccine experts, so severe that some are now hesitant to attach their names to scientific publications, especially after a tragic shooting at the Atlanta headquarters claimed the life of a police officer. Monarez confirmed that Kennedy failed to offer condolences after the incident, instead touring the facility three days later for their next interaction.
This dramatic Senate session unfolded just as the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) was set to convene. Typically, ACIP recommendations guide insurance coverage for vaccines and eligibility for the federal Vaccines for Children Program. However, an insurance trade group issued a rare pre-emptive statement, declaring that coverage would remain unchanged regardless of the panel’s impending decisions, signaling a deep distrust in the current administration’s influence.
The ACIP, traditionally a body of diverse vaccination experts, underwent a radical transformation this spring when Secretary Kennedy controversially dismissed all 17 members. He then appointed new advisors, some known for their skepticism regarding vaccines – a decision Monarez claims she was not consulted on, despite awaiting her own confirmation at the time. Monarez further testified that Kennedy declared the childhood vaccine schedule would be altered in September, alleging a complete lack of scientific basis for existing recommendations. Critics, including Kennedy himself, have specifically targeted the long-standing CDC guideline for hepatitis B vaccination at birth. Monarez expressed profound unease, warning of the “real risk” that vaccine access for children and vulnerable populations could be severely curtailed by recommendations lacking “rigorous scientific review.”
Senator Bill Cassidy (R-LA), the health committee chairman, initiated the hearing despite having cast a pivotal vote for Kennedy’s confirmation. As a physician and staunch vaccine advocate, Cassidy now navigates a precarious political landscape, facing a right-wing primary challenge. His stance on Kennedy has shifted, evolving from cautious support to increasingly sharp criticism. When questioned post-hearing about public trust in potential changes to the childhood vaccine schedule, Cassidy emphatically stated that Americans should not have confidence. He highlighted the dramatic success of the infant hepatitis B vaccine, which has reduced annual cases from 20,000 to just 20. While reserving final judgment until Kennedy testifies, Cassidy hinted at a future hearing to explore the Secretary’s perspective.
However, other Republican physicians on the committee, Senators Rand Paul (R-KY) and Roger Marshall (R-KS), voiced skepticism about the scientific backing of the CDC’s current vaccine schedule. Senator Marshall controversially told Monarez, “The biggest difference in philosophy that I see, is that I think the C.D.C. is the cause of vaccine hesitancy… You are the problem.”
(A visual shows Senator Bill Cassidy, the Republican chairman of the committee, seated behind a wooden dais in a hearing room, pointing with a pencil as he addresses the committee.)
This pivotal hearing marked the first public assessment of Secretary Kennedy’s leadership by former health officials under his command, starkly illustrating the unpredictable political landscape of public health. Ironically, some Republicans who initially voted to confirm Dr. Monarez now accused her of dishonesty. Senators Markwayne Mullin, Jim Banks, and Ashley Moody notably criticized her choice of attorney, Mark Zaid, known for his opposition to former President Trump. Conversely, Democrats, who had opposed her confirmation, hailed Monarez as a hero. Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA) even offered a public apology, admitting, “I had concern about your backbone, and I was wrong.”
The situation also raised significant questions about congressional authority, as Monarez was the first Senate-confirmed CDC director, a requirement enacted after the coronavirus pandemic. Senator Cassidy openly questioned the efficacy of Senate confirmation if a nominee could be dismissed just 29 days later.
Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT), the committee’s ranking member, offered a sharper critique, posing, “How did Dr. Monarez go from being a public health expert with unimpeachable scientific credentials who had the full confidence of Secretary Kennedy into being a liar and untrustworthy in less than a month?” He concluded that Monarez was “fired because she refused to act as a rubber stamp to implement Secretary Kennedy’s dangerous agenda.”
Despite Kennedy’s pledges of “radical transparency,” both Monarez and Houry informed senators that critical vaccine policy decisions were being made without public scientific discussion. Dr. Houry, for example, recounted discovering the government’s stance against recommending the COVID-19 vaccine for healthy children and pregnant women through one of Kennedy’s posts on X. She struggled to implement guidance based solely on a “tweet,” requesting official memoranda and data that were never provided. Houry also highlighted the urgent need to counteract Kennedy’s repeated false claims, including his assertion that “vaccines had fetal parts” – a misrepresentation she promptly sought to correct within her leadership team. While some vaccines historically utilized cell lines derived from aborted fetuses decades ago, the vaccines themselves do not contain fetal tissue.
Both Dr. Monarez and Dr. Houry expressed profound apprehension for the future of public health and voiced concerns about the United States’ preparedness for future pandemics. Monarez issued a dire warning: should vaccine access be hindered, preventable diseases would inevitably resurge, jeopardizing American children. The U.S. has already experienced a measles outbreak this year, and whooping cough cases have surpassed pre-COVID pandemic levels, underscoring these critical threats.
Dr. Monarez reiterated her willingness to consider alterations to vaccine recommendations, but strictly contingent on robust data and evidence. She stated that Secretary Kennedy held a contrasting view. Her testimony detailed an August 25 directive from Kennedy, demanding her advance commitment to approve all future vaccine advisory panel recommendations “without data or science.” He also instructed her to fire career officials involved in vaccine policy without cause, threatening her resignation if she refused. Monarez powerfully concluded, “I could have stayed silent, agreed to the demands, and no one would have known. What the public would have seen were scientists dismissed without cause and vaccine protections quietly eroded, all under the authority of a Senate-confirmed director with unimpeachable credentials. I could have kept the office, the title, but I would have lost the one thing that cannot be replaced: my integrity.”