Today's News: CDC Director Susan Monarez Fired After Accusing RFK Jr of “Weaponizing Public Health”
This event triggered the immediate resignation of at least four high-ranking CDC officials, who cited the politicization of science, vaccine misinformation, and an “untenable” environment.
Photo: Tierney L. Cross/The New York Times
Overview
Date: August 27, 2025
Topic: Ouster of CDC Director Susan Monarez and Mass Resignations Amidst Politicization of Public Health
Summary: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Susan Monarez was reportedly removed from her position on August 27, 2025, less than a month after her appointment. Her departure followed intense clashes with Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. over vaccine policy and his demands for staff changes. While the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the White House declared her no longer director, Monarez’s lawyers contend she has neither resigned nor been officially fired, accusing Kennedy of “weaponizing public health.”
Sources
The New York Times - New C.D.C. Director Resists Ouster as Other Officials Resign
NBC News - Lawyers for CDC Director Susan Monarez say ‘she will not resign’
Fox News - CDC Director Susan Monarez refuses to be fired as other officials call it quits
The Washington Post - White House fires CDC director who says RFK Jr. is ‘weaponizing public health’
The Wall Street Journal - CDC Director Susan Monarez Removed From Post, Official Says
Key Points
Susan Monarez, sworn in as CDC Director on July 31, was reportedly removed from her post less than a month later, on August 27, 2025.
Her removal stems from a direct conflict with Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. over vaccine policy and his demands for Monarez to fire senior CDC officials.
Monarez’s lawyers, Mark S. Zaid and Abbe David Lowell, dispute the official account, stating she has neither resigned nor been officially fired and will not resign, accusing Kennedy and HHS of “weaponizing public health for political gain.”
At least four high-ranking CDC officials—Dr. Debra Houry (chief medical officer), Dr. Demetre Daskalakis (director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases), Dr. Daniel Jernigan (director of the National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases), and Dr. Jennifer Layden (director of the Office of Public Health Data, Surveillance, and Technology)—resigned in the wake of Monarez’s ouster.
Resigning officials cited the politicization of public health, the spread of misinformation regarding vaccines, and an “untenable” environment as reasons for their departures.
The events have significantly worsened morale at the CDC, which was already low due to earlier budget cuts, staff layoffs, and a fatal shooting at its Atlanta headquarters on August 8, which authorities linked to anger over Covid-19 vaccines.
Kennedy’s history of vaccine skepticism and his actions, such as dissolving the influential Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) and replacing members with vaccine skeptics, are central to the conflict.
Monarez, with a Ph.D. in microbiology and immunology, was the first non-physician to lead the CDC in over 50 years and the first-ever Senate-confirmed CDC director. She was President Trump’s second choice after his initial nominee, Dr. David Weldon, was withdrawn due to concerns about his vaccine views.
Unique Highlights
The New York Times details the specific timeline of Kennedy’s demands: he summoned Monarez on Monday (August 25) to resign, then demanded she remove top leadership by week’s end. After she called Senator Bill Cassidy, Kennedy accused her of “being a leaker” in a Tuesday meeting and told her she would be fired, with a White House official later informing her that President Trump would terminate her if she didn’t resign by day’s end. The article also quotes former CDC Directors Dr. Mandy Cohen and Dr. Anne Schuchat, who express grave concerns about the weakening of the agency and national health security. It highlights that Kennedy brought in “widely discredited researcher” David Geier to pursue a link between vaccines and autism, and that Kennedy suggested a preliminary answer to the cause of autism would be found soon.
CNN provides a direct quote from White House spokesperson Kush Desai stating that Monarez was “terminated” by the White House because she was “not aligned with the President’s agenda of Making America Healthy Again” and refused to resign. It also includes an internal CDC source lamenting, “Our agency is crumbling,” and noting, “The bullet holes aren’t even repaired on our buildings.” Senator Patty Murray (D-Washington) is quoted calling for Kennedy’s ouster, stating, “Director Monarez is not the problem, RFK Jr. is.”
NBC News reports that Monarez canceled a planned Monday meeting with CDC staff focused on safety and security after the shooting, citing an “HHS meeting that I have been asked to attend in person in DC.” It also features a quote from Michael Osterholm, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy, calling the departures “a serious loss for America” and directly blaming the “failed leadership of extremists currently in charge of the Department of Health and Human Services.” Osterholm is reportedly launching the “Vaccine Integrity Project” as an alternative to the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices.
Fox News specifically notes that Monarez was the first-ever Senate-confirmed CDC director, a change mandated by a 2022 law. It highlights Monarez’s statement during her confirmation that she had “not seen a causal link between vaccines and autism.”
The Washington Post explicitly states that the White House “formally fired Monarez” after her lawyers' statement. It details Kennedy’s specific action on Wednesday: narrowing approval of new coronavirus vaccines to people 65 and older or those with risk factors, instead of the broader recommendation for everyone 6 months and older. The article extensively quotes Dr. Demetre Daskalakis’s resignation letter, where he criticizes Kennedy for listening to “Unvetted and conflicted outside organizations” over CDC science and states, “As it stands now, I must agree with him, that he should not be considered a source of accurate information.” It also provides examples of other Trump administration officials with brief tenures who were reassigned or ousted.
The Wall Street Journal cites “a senior Trump administration official” as the source for the information that Monarez was pushed out. It mentions a letter from “hundreds of current and former employees” to Kennedy and members of Congress, stating that the attack on the CDC campus occurred “as Americans’ distrust of public health institutions grows and federal leaders politicize and tout health misinformation.”
Contrasting Details
Status of Susan Monarez’s Departure:
The New York Times, NBC News, Fox News, The Wall Street Journal report that Monarez’s lawyers unequivocally state she has “neither resigned nor received notification from the White House that she has been fired, and as a person of integrity and devoted to science, she will not resign.” These articles primarily focus on the lawyers' denial and the HHS’s statement on X that she “is no longer director.”
CNN and The Washington Post go further, reporting that the White House explicitly stated Monarez was “terminated” after refusing to resign. The Washington Post states the White House “formally fired Monarez” soon after her lawyers’ statement was released.
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