The Wednesday confirmation hearing for President Donald Trump’s pick for the director of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Dr. Susan Monarez, included moments where she shared her stances on several major public health issues, which — while not controversial for CDC leaders in the past — potentially put her at odds with her boss, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., should she be confirmed.
At the beginning of the hearing, Monarez was clear in her support for vaccines — a topic where Kennedy has expressed some skepticism.
“I think vaccines save lives. I think that we need to continue to support the promotion of utilization of vaccines,” Monarez said.
Her comments came as she was asked by Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders about a recent decision reported by POLITICO that Kennedy has decided to end U.S. funding for a global vaccine alliance, Gavi.
“I wasn’t involved in that decision making. If I’m confirmed as a CDC director, I will certainly look into it, and I’m happy to follow up with you,” Monarez said.
Kennedy has long held many vaccine-skeptic views, refuted by experts and high-quality studies, long before he joined the administration, but he has insisted he is not “anti-vaccine” and rather “pro-safety.”
Monarez also stood apart from Kennedy on her views on autism, and whether there is any link between the neurological disorder and childhood vaccinations — which Kennedy has long raised as a potential reason for rising rates of autism diagnoses.
“I have not seen a causal link between vaccines and autism,” Monarez said, asked by Sanders if she agrees with the American Medical Association’s stance “that there is no scientific proven link between vaccines and autism.”
Kennedy, in his own confirmation hearing, refused to acknowledge that there is not a link between vaccines and autism, causing him to nearly lose the key vote of Sen. Bill Cassidy, a Republican and a doctor.
Kennedy has since launched a major effort at NIH to look into the causes of rising autism diagnoses.
The myth that vaccines cause autism was born out of a fraudulent 1998 study, hypothesizing that the measles, mumps, rubella vaccine caused intestinal inflammation, which, in turn, led to the development of autism.
The paper has since been discredited by health experts, retracted from the journal in which it was published, and its primary author, Andrew Wakefield, lost his medical license after an investigation found he had acted “dishonestly and irresponsibly” in conducting his research.
More than a dozen high-quality studies have since found no evidence of a link between childhood vaccines and autism.
Asked if she believed the fluoridated water in her Maryland town was safe, as Kennedy continues on a path to remove fluoride from water systems nationwide, she said: “I believe the water in Potomac, Maryland, is safe.”
Also, when asked if she holds any prejudice against mRNA vaccine technology, which Kennedy has disparaged, she said: “I have no prejudice against mRNA platform or any other approach that is being taken to develop vaccines.”
Monarez has served in a number of leading government public health roles under multiple presidents on both sides of the aisle. She has spent nearly two decades focused on technology and public health, including leading a center created by former President Joe Biden to develop groundbreaking cancer treatment.
But on Wednesday, Monarez appeared to walk a fine line — supporting her future boss, Kennedy, while also answering to Democrats who pushed her to denounce actions that have been controversial in the public health sphere, including changes to the CDC’s vaccine advisory panel, also known as ACIP.
Earlier this month, Kennedy removed all 17 sitting members of the CDC’s vaccine advisory committee and replaced them with new members. The move has been controversial, with some experts saying it makes the U.S. “less prepared for infectious disease threats.”
Democratic Sen. Patty Murray pressed Monarez on whether she would follow the group’s recommendations if it proposed “remov[ing] vaccines from the vaccine schedule” or not approving new vaccines “in opposition to clear, established science.”
Monarez replied that she “would be an active listener” during ACIP meetings and would “be looking at how the ACIP members are able to evaluate this complex scientific information and statistical analysis that goes into the risk-benefit.”
Democratic Sen. Maggie Hassan asked Monarez if there were any areas where she disagreed with Kennedy. Monarez didn’t respond with any specific issues, but described herself as an “independent thinker,” which she said Kennedy values.
Hassan pushed back: “When the secretary said it’s very, very difficult for measles to kill a healthy person — no concerns from you about that?”
Monarez responded that measles can be fatal in one in 1,000 people — but Hassan cut her off, adding, “Right, which is why your being able to independently state in public that you differ with the secretary is a really, really important thing, and right now you’re showing a real reluctance to do this.”
Trump tapped Monarez to lead the CDC in March after the administration withdrew Trump’s other pick, Dr. David Weldon, to head the agency citing the fact that he did not have the votes needed to be confirmed.
Monarez served as the acting CDC director from January until March — when she left the post because she was nominated to be director.
She has experience in both the public and private sector — including working in the government under former presidents George W. Bush, Barack Obama, Trump’s first term and Biden. Her work has included strategies to combat antimicrobial resistance, too.
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