Overview: Dr. Susan Monarez, the director of the CDC, has been removed from her role after refusing to follow unscientific directives and fire dedicated health experts. Her lawyers accuse the Department of targeting her for protecting the public over serving a political agenda. Following her dismissal, three senior officials of the CDC left the agency due to changes to its vaccine advisory board and other vaccine policies. The FDA has approved updated COVID-19 vaccines, but only people over 65 and people with existing health issues will be recommended for the vaccine.
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Less than a month after being sworn in as the director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Dr. Susan Monarez was removed from the role, according to a post on X by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
According to her lawyers, Dr. Monarez has not resigned nor has she been fired. Her lawyers, Abbe Lowell and Mark Zaid, accused HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and the Department of targeting Dr. Monarez.
“When CDC Director Susan Monarez refused to rubberstamp unscientific, reckless directives and fire dedicated health experts she chose protecting the public over serving a political agenda,” read the statement issued by Lowell and Zaid. “For that, she has been targeted. Dr. Monarez 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.”
In the statement, her lawyers referenced the Secretary’s previous actions of abruptly firing all 17 members of the CDC advisory committee in June and the “dismissal of seasoned scientists.”
Following Dr. Monarez’s forced exit, three CDC senior officials — Dr. Debra Houry, Dr. Demetre Daskalakis and Dr. Daniel Jernigan — left the agency as a result of changes to the vaccine advisory committee and changes to vaccine policies, reported Reuters.
In an interview with Reuters, the three officials who resigned did so after learning that the RFK Jr.’s appointed advisory committee were making recommendations before reviewing data.
“I am unable to serve in an environment that treats [the] CDC as a tool to generate policies and materials that do not reflect scientific reality and are designed to hurt rather than to improve the public’s health,” read Dr. Daskalakis’ resignation letter. “The recent change in the adult and children’s immunization schedule threaten the lives of the youngest Americans and pregnant people.”
This week, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved updated COVID-19 vaccines, but they come with restrictions.
“The emergency use authorizations for COVID vaccines, once used to justify broad mandates on the general public during the Biden administration, are now rescinded,” RFK Jr. posted on X. “FDA has now issued marketing authorization for those at higher risk: Moderna (6+ months), Pfizer (5+), and Novavax (12+). These vaccines are available for all patients who choose them after consulting with their doctors.”
With this updated approval, only people over 65 and people with existing health issues will be recommended for the COVID-19 vaccine. Prior approval made COVID vaccines available to anyone six months of age and older regardless of their health status.
This update approval comes as COVID-19 cases surge, with California experiencing some of the highest rates in the nation and as a new variant “stratus” circulates.