CDC nominee Erica Schwartz pledges science integrity amid political pressure

Dr. Erica Schwartz, President Donald Trump’s third nominee to lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee on July 15 that she would “never betray the science.” Senators questioned whether she could resist pressure from HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has pursued vaccine‑policy changes and is reported to have directed a pause on flu‑vaccination campaigns. Schwartz declined to criticize Kennedy’s actions, calling such inquiries “hypotheticals.”

The hearing highlighted turmoil at the CDC, which has lost more than 3,000 employees – over a quarter of its workforce – since Trump returned to office, leaving morale low and leadership in flux. Schwartz, a former deputy surgeon general and Coast Guard chief medical officer now employed by UnitedHealth Group, affirmed that vaccines are “overwhelmingly safe and effective” and accepted scientific evidence that they do not cause autism. Senators Bill Cassidy and Bernie Sanders pressed her on whether she would report unscientific directives to Congress, underscoring deep divisions over the agency’s future direction.