CDC Leadership Overhaul Sparks Multiple Resignations Amid Vaccine Policy Clash

President Donald Trump has appointed Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s deputy, Jim O’Neill, as acting director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) following the firing of CDC Director Susan Monarez amid clashes over vaccine policy. Monarez was dismissed after refusing to endorse directives she deemed unscientific, triggering the resignation of several senior CDC officials who criticized the agency's leadership shift as politically motivated and harmful to public health. The Trump administration and Kennedy, a vocal vaccine skeptic, defended the overhaul as necessary to align the CDC with the president's health agenda, emphasizing the need for strong leadership to fix what they describe as an agency in trouble with misplaced priorities. The changes have unsettled CDC staff and drawn criticism from both political parties and public health experts, with concerns about the agency's stability and future direction. Kennedy has criticized the CDC's focus on certain public health achievements and signaled a broader reorientation of the agency’s priorities under Trump's administration. Supporters of the administration argue that the leadership changes reflect a commitment to the 'Making America Healthy Again' mission, while opponents warn that these moves risk undermining evidence-based public health policies.