Rest assured, the new CDC director thinks āabortion surveillanceā is essential | Arwa Mahdawi
An exchange between Dr Erica Schwartz and Senator Josh Hawley during her confirmation hearing is alarming Robert F Kennedy Jrās new cooking show isnāt the
An exchange between Dr Erica Schwartz and Senator Josh Hawley during her confirmation hearing is alarming Robert F Kennedy Jrās new cooking show isnāt the only big news out of the public health world this week. On Wednesday, Dr Erica Schwartz was confirmed by the US Senate as director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), making her the first Black woman to hold the position.
This is the first time in almost a year that the agency has had a permanent leader; the previous director, Susan Monarez, only lasted 29 days before she was ousted for butting heads with RFK about US vaccine policies. Translation: she was a little too keen on following accepted science for the Trump administration.
So is Schwartz an RFK-approved vaccine skeptic who thinks you can cure cancer by praying to trees? Surprisingly: no. Schwartz, who served as deputy surgeon general during Trumpās first term, actually has government experience and a public health background. During her confirmation hearing in July, she walked a careful tightrope when asked about her stance towards vaccines.
Schwartz said she āwill never betray the scienceā but also dodged questions about how she would handle pressure from Kennedy. Arwa Mahdawi is a Guardian columnist Continue reading...
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