Former CDC Director Susan Monarez testifies before Senate about firing

(ASSCOCIATED PRESS) — The U.S. public health system is headed to a “very dangerous place” with Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his team of anti-vaccine advisers in charge, fired Centers for Disease Control and Prevention chief Susan Monarez warned senators on Wednesday.

Describing extraordinary turmoil inside the nation’s health agencies, Monarez and former CDC Chief Medical Officer Chief Debra Houry said Kennedy, a longtime vaccine skeptic, and his political advisers repeatedly rebuffed data supporting the safety and efficacy of vaccines.

Monarez’s revelations to senators raised serious questions, even among some Republicans, about Kennedy’s self-professed commitment to employ “gold-standard science” for developing public health guidance, including around the nation’s vaccination schedule. Her testimony was given to the Senate’s health committee just a day before a vaccine panel is set to consider major changes to the routine vaccinations recommended for the nation’s children.

Monarez, who was fired after 29 days into her tenure over vaccine policy disagreements with Kennedy, told senators that deadly infectious diseases like polio could be poised to make a devastating comeback if the health secretary and his team continue their public campaign against routine shots.

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