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Former Centers for Disease Control and Prevention director Susan Monarez warned senators that America’s public health system is headed to a "dangerous place" under Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his anti-vaccine advisers.
During a Wednesday Senate hearing, Monarez and former CDC Chief Medical Officer Chief Debra Houry described exchanges in which Kennedy or political advisers rejected data supporting the safety and efficacy of vaccines, the Associated Press reported.
Monarez told senators deadly diseases like polio and whooping cough, long contained, could make a comeback in the U.S.
"I believe preventable diseases will return, and I believe we will have our children harmed by things they don’t need to be harmed by," Monarez said before the Senate health committee.
Monarez was selected by Kennedy and nominated by President Donald Trump for the CDC role but was later fired several weeks into the job over disagreements on vaccine policies.
FILE-Susan Monarez, President Donald Trump’s nominee to be the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), testifies during her confirmation hearing before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions in the Di …
Monarez describes her firing by RFK
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Susan Monarez said she was ordered by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to resign if she did not sign off on new vaccine recommendations, which are expected to be released later this week by an advisory panel that Kennedy filled with medical experts and vaccine skeptics.
Monarez said that when she asked for data or science to back up Kennedy’s request to change the childhood vaccination schedule, he offered none.
She also added that Kennedy told her "he spoke to the president every day about changing the childhood vaccination schedule."
Susan Monarez claims RFK Jr. gave her an ultimatum
Dig deeper:
In a copy of prepared remarks, obtained Tuesday by The Associated Press, Susan Monarez will senators at the hearing Robert F. Kennedy Jr. gave her an ultimatum: "Preapprove" new vaccine recommendations from a controversial advisory CDC panel that Kennedy has filled with some medical experts who doubt vaccine safety or be fired. The AP reported that the panel is expected to vote on new vaccine recommendations later this week.
RELATED: RFK Jr. pledges HHS will determine cause of autism by September
Monarez said it was both her refusal to sign off on new vaccination recommendations without scientific evidence and her unwillingness to fire high-ranking career CDC officials without cause that led to her firing.
The AP reported that Kennedy has denied Monarez’s accusations that he ordered "rubber-stamped" vaccine recommendations but has acknowledged he demanded firings.
Kennedy described Monarez as admitting to him that she is "untrustworthy," a claim Monarez has denied through her attorney.
Who is Susan Monarez?
The backstory:
Dr. Susan Monarez has a doctorate in microbiology and immunology from the University of Wisconsin, and is a postdoctoral researcher at Stanford University, according to the Associated Press. Before working at the CDC, Monarez was largely known for her government roles in health technology and biosecurity.
The Source: Information for this story was provided by the Associated Press and previous LIVENOW from FOX reporting. This story was reported from Washington, D.C.