{"id":7429,"date":"2026-07-16T07:48:06","date_gmt":"2026-07-16T02:48:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=7429"},"modified":"2026-07-16T07:48:06","modified_gmt":"2026-07-16T02:48:06","slug":"cdc-director-nominee-erica-schwartz-grilled-by-senators-about-vaccines-and-political-pressure","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=7429","title":{"rendered":"CDC Director Nominee Erica Schwartz Grilled by Senators About Vaccines and Political Pressure"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<section>\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.time.com\/v3\/assets\/bltea6093859af6183b\/bltdab9bd38f0c81579\/6a57f90f70a05bfa74f52319\/GettyImages-2286230840.jpg?branch=production\" \/><figcaption>Erica Schwartz attends her confirmation hearing to become director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention with the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee on Capitol Hill July 15, 2026 in Washington, DC. \u2014Finn Gomez\u2014Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/section>\n<section>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/time.com\/article\/2026\/04\/17\/trump-nominates-erica-schwartz-new-cdc-director\/\">Dr. Erica Schwartz<\/a>, President Donald Trump\u2019s nominee to serve as the next director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), faced pointed questions about <a href=\"https:\/\/time.com\/tag\/vaccines\/\">vaccines<\/a> and scientific integrity at a <a href=\"https:\/\/time.com\/tag\/senate\/\">Senate<\/a> confirmation hearing on Wednesday, July 15.<\/p>\n<p>Schwartz, a physician who served as deputy surgeon general during the first Trump Administration, was grilled by senators of both political parties on whether she would stand up to Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary <a href=\"https:\/\/time.com\/collections\/time100-health-2026\/7362481\/robert-f-kennedy-jr-health\/\">Robert F. Kennedy Jr.<\/a>\u2014her boss if she is confirmed\u2014if he pushes for actions or <a href=\"https:\/\/time.com\/7344423\/dangers-rfk-jr-vaccine-schedule\/\">policies that would endanger public health<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Schwartz told the Senate health committee that she would not \u201cbetray the science\u201d as CDC director and vowed to \u201clead with integrity.\u201d But some senators expressed concerns about her commitment to defy political interference.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou can be CDC director and just take orders. We need a CDC director that will actually stand up to crazy, stupid things being said that <a href=\"https:\/\/time.com\/article\/2026\/04\/30\/cdc-vaccine-autism-trust\/\">undermine faith in immunization<\/a>,\u201d said Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, a physician and the Republican chair of the committee.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019ve got thousands of kids hospitalized because people have promoted that immunization is bad, and now <a href=\"https:\/\/time.com\/7380102\/rfk-jr-vaccine-schedule-measles-rsv\/\">kids have died because of it<\/a>,\u201d he continued, before asking Schwartz if she would \u201chave the ability and the firmness to stand up to that political meddling.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI will never compromise on the science. I will always, always have the public\u2019s health in mind,\u201d Schwartz replied, a response that Cassidy said wasn\u2019t \u201cquite the direct answer I was hoping for.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Cassidy, whose Senate term will end in January after losing a reelection bid, cast a key vote last year that helped confirm Kennedy as health secretary. Cassidy said at the time that he was supporting Kennedy, a former environmental lawyer, because he had vowed to protect access to vaccines and respect longstanding vaccine approval systems, among other promises. Kennedy has since reneged on many of them, according to Cassidy.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Schwartz told the committee that she believes in the safety and effectiveness of vaccines and that, as a doctor, has personally administered shots to thousands of people. She added that she wants to be the \u201cthe CDC director for all Americans,\u201d including people who have concerns about vaccines. \u201cI want to make sure I understand why parents have vaccine hesitancy,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>If confirmed, Schwartz would take the helm of a beleaguered agency that has <a href=\"https:\/\/time.com\/article\/2026\/07\/02\/ebola-returns-how-we-can-fight-back\/\">lacked consistent leadership<\/a> and has experienced significant <a href=\"https:\/\/time.com\/7325192\/cdc-firings-government-shutdown-trump\/\">staffing and budget cuts<\/a> since Trump took office.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>In that time, the CDC has had only one confirmed director\u2014<a href=\"https:\/\/time.com\/7312827\/susan-monarez-cdc-director\/\">Susan Monarez<\/a>, who served in the position for less than a month before being fired by Trump last August after a clash with Kennedy. Monarez says she was ousted because she <a href=\"https:\/\/time.com\/7314702\/cdc-officials-resignations-rfk-jr-vaccines-exclusive\/\">refused to rubber-stamp vaccine recommendations<\/a> and fire career scientists.<\/p>\n<p>Citing Monarez\u2019s experience, Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, the top Democrat on the health committee, asked Schwartz if she would commit to alerting Congress if Kennedy or another member of the Trump Administration urges her \u201cto implement policies that aren\u2019t scientific and could harm the health and well-being of the American people.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSenator, I do not believe that the president or the secretary would ever do what you just mentioned,\u201d Schwartz said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cReally? You think that is the record?\u201d Sanders said.<\/p>\n<p>Schwartz is a board-certified preventive medicine physician and a retired rear admiral in the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps. She previously served as chief medical officer of the U.S. Coast Guard.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Former public-health officials have expressed support for Schwartz\u2019s nomination, including <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/posts\/brett-giroir-512679204_on-wednesday-rear-admiral-erica-schwartz-activity-7482485331859214338-R60I?utm_source=share&amp;utm_medium=member_desktop&amp;rcm=ACoAAAMonsABRq8xmI-Xcacnvfo7R4ph9PrUU8E\">Dr. Brett Giroir<\/a>, a former U.S. assistant secretary for health, and Dr. Jerome Adams, a former surgeon general and Schwartz\u2019s former boss.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDr. Schwartz is a home-run pick,\u201d Adams <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/jerome-adams-erica-schwartz-face-the-nation-surgeon-general-kennedy-cdc\/\">told CBS\u2019 \u201cFace the Nation\u201d<\/a> in April.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Dr. Debra Houry, CDC\u2019s former chief medical officer who <a href=\"https:\/\/time.com\/7338714\/dr-debra-houry-essay-cdc\/\">resigned in protest<\/a> from the agency after Monarez\u2019s ouster, told TIME that Schwartz \u201chas the right qualifications\u201d for the job.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Houry observed, however, that several senators appeared frustrated during Schwartz\u2019s confirmation hearing because of her failure to provide direct answers to questions about political interference.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Alongside Schwartz, the senators also heard testimony on Wednesday from Sean Kaufman, nominated by Trump to serve as the assistant secretary for strategic preparedness and response at HHS. Kaufman was questioned by senators about his views on public health and vaccines, including comments he made in the past <a href=\"https:\/\/www.statnews.com\/2026\/07\/10\/sean-kaufman-hhs-nominee-past-statements-question-vaccine-safety\/\">casting doubt on the safety of vaccines<\/a>. In a 2022 video, Kaufman said he <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=xyX_ZoUVWsE\">hated the CDC<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>If confirmed, Kaufman would run an agency focused on helping the U.S. prepare for public-health emergencies, including developing vaccines and other countermeasures.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/section>\n<script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Erica Schwartz attends her confirmation hearing to become director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention with the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee on Capitol Hill July 15, 2026 in Washington, DC. \u2014Finn Gomez\u2014Getty Images Dr. Erica Schwartz, President Donald Trump\u2019s nominee to serve as the next director of the U.S. Centers&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7430,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/static.time.com\/v3\/assets\/bltea6093859af6183b\/bltdab9bd38f0c81579\/6a57f90f70a05bfa74f52319\/GettyImages-2286230840.jpg?branch=production","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7429","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pics-news"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7429","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=7429"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7429\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/7430"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=7429"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=7429"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=7429"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}