President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the nation’s top public health agency promised senators Wednesday that she would base decisions on science and work to restore public trust in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, even as lawmakers questioned whether she could remain independent under Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Dr. Erica Schwartz, a career military physician and former deputy surgeon general, appeared before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee seeking confirmation to become director of the Atlanta-based CDC. If confirmed, she would inherit an agency that has undergone sweeping layoffs, rapid leadership changes and growing political scrutiny over vaccine policy.
Schwartz, 54, spent much of her career in military medicine. She served as chief medical officer of the U.S. Coast Guard, overseeing a health system that included 41 clinics and 150 sick bays, before becoming deputy surgeon general during Trump’s first administration. She currently works as an executive with UnitedHealth Group.
“I have been vaccinating people throughout my entire career in uniformed services. I believe in vaccines,” Schwartz told senators. “I do believe that mRNA technology is safe and effective.” She also pledged to “follow the science wherever it leads” and said restoring trust in public health institutions would be her top priority.
Her testimony stood in contrast to Kennedy, a longtime vaccine skeptic who has repeatedly criticized mRNA COVID-19 vaccines and has moved to reshape federal vaccine policy since taking office. Kennedy fired the administration’s previous CDC director, Dr. Susan Monarez, after disagreements over vaccine recommendations and other agency decisions, raising questions about how much independence Schwartz would have if confirmed.
Several senators pressed Schwartz on whether she would stand up to political pressure if scientific evidence conflicted with the administration’s priorities.
“We need unbiased leaders who make decisions based upon science, not politics or ideology,” said committee Chairman Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-Louisiana, a physician who has publicly disagreed with Kennedy over vaccine policy.
Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont, pointed to emails showing Kennedy pressured Monarez to change CDC guidance on childhood flu vaccinations before she was dismissed.
“She refused to act as a rubber stamp for Secretary Kennedy’s very dangerous agenda,” Sanders said.
Schwartz repeatedly responded that she would not compromise scientific integrity.
“I will never compromise on science,” she told the committee, adding that she would always follow the law.
Her nomination comes during one of the most turbulent periods in the CDC’s history.
Since Trump returned to office, the agency has lost more than 3,000 employees through layoffs and resignations, reducing its workforce by more than one-quarter. Public health officials say morale has plummeted as experienced scientists and career leaders have departed while political appointees have rotated through senior leadership positions.
The CDC also has experienced unusual turnover at the top. Trump’s original nominee, former Florida Congressman Dr. David Weldon, never received a confirmation vote after support in the Senate collapsed. Monarez was then confirmed but removed less than a month later after administration officials concluded she was not aligned with their agenda. Since then, the agency has operated under a series of temporary leaders, with National Institutes of Health Director Dr. Jay Bhattacharya currently overseeing many of the CDC’s responsibilities.
Some Democrats questioned whether Schwartz would be willing to challenge Kennedy if necessary. She declined to speculate about hypothetical disagreements but maintained that rebuilding confidence in the agency would require scientific integrity and greater transparency.
“Restoring trust to the CDC is my No. 1 priority,” she said. “Scientific integrity is core.” She also pledged to modernize the agency and pursue what she called “radical transparency.”
At the same time, Schwartz expressed support for parts of Kennedy’s “Make America Healthy Again” agenda, particularly efforts promoting better nutrition and physical fitness.
Financial disclosures filed ahead of the hearing showed Schwartz plans to resign from her executive position at UnitedHealth Group, where she earns about $850,000 annually in salary and bonuses, if confirmed. She also pledged to cash out stock options and resign from the boards of Butterfly Network, a medical imaging technology company; Aveanna Healthcare, a home health provider; and the Searching for Solutions Institute, a Florida nonprofit, to avoid potential conflicts of interest.
Schwartz’s nomination now moves to the full Senate, where lawmakers will decide whether she becomes the first long-term CDC director since the Trump administration began reshaping the nation’s public health agencies.
Sources Associated Press