The US Senate voted 51-44 on Wednesday to confirm Dr. Erica Schwartz as director of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Dr. Schwartz, a former deputy surgeon general and retired US Coast Guard officer, was nominated for the job in April.
Background and Confirmation
She has a lengthy record of guiding vaccination programs and crises responses for the government. The CDC has been without an official director for a year, since Dr. Susan Monarez was removed less than a month into the job after clashing with US Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. over vaccine policies.
Sen. Bill Cassidy, a medical doctor and chairman of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, had raised concerns about Schwartz’s independence and autonomy to lead the CDC after Monarez’s ouster, but he was a crucial vote in favor of Schwartz. He said he decided to support her after multiple conversations with top HHS officials about removing claims about vaccines and autism from the CDC website, and making personnel changes at the agency.
Original reporting: KRDO (Colorado Springs metro) — read the source article.
